"For nearly thirty-seven years, I ..., his wife, ... rested and was warmed in the sunlight of his loyal love and great fame, ...The light of his glorious fame still reaches out to me, falls upon me, and warms me"

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About twelve years old, Julia declared she would marry a "galliant, brave, dashing,  soldier." Ten years later her dream came true.

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Julia thoroughly enjoyed the years she spent in the Executive Mansion, declaring it was the longest time she and her husband had lived together, in one place, their entire marriage.

JULIA

  • Born in St. Louis, Missouri, on January 26, 1826

  • Daughter of Colonel Frederick Dent, a successful St. Louis plantation and slave owner

  • Educated in the Mauro Boarding School for seven years in St. Louis

  • Married Ulysses S Grant August 22, 1848

  • Ulysses and Julia Grant had four children: Frederick Dent Grant, Ulysses S Grant, Jr., (Bucky), Ellen Wrenshall (Nellie) Grant, Jesse Root Grant

  • During the war Julia managed the family’s business affairs, arranged for children’s education, and accompanied her husband whenever possible

  • First Lady of the Land from 1869-1877

  • Opened the White House on Tuesday afternoons to the public

  • Welcomed visitors with grace and compassion

  • Included Senators' and Cabinet members' wives in receiving lines

  • Died December 14, 1902, in Washington, D.C. at the age of 76

  • She was laid alongside her husband in the General Grant National Monument, Manhattan, NY


Julia Dent Grant

How could the daughter of a plantation owner, who owned slaves, marry the son of a staunch abolitionist? Hear Julia tell the story of her unlikely union with the most admired man of the 19th century. Featured speaker at teas and various social gatherings.

 

 


For more information or to schedule a program, contact Scott Whitney, U.S. Grant interpreter at:

14592 Edwardsville Road
Winnebago, Illinois 61088
815-247-8702

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