Helen Herron Taft
Helen Louise Taft was First Lady of the United States from 1909 to 1913 as the wife of President William Howard Taft. Born to a politically well-connected Ohio family, she took an early interest in political life, deciding at the age of 17 that she wished to become first lady. Herron married Taft in 1886, and she guided him throughout his political career, encouraging him to take actions that would bring him closer to the presidency. Accompanying her husband to the Philippines in 1900, she became a prominent socialite in Manila, contributing to US-Philippines relations. After her husband was appointed Secretary of War, she played a significant role in convincing him to run for president in the 1908 presidential election and making the necessary connections to ensure his success.
As first lady, Taft was closely involved in the political aspects of the presidency, regularly sitting in on meetings and serving as her husband's closest advisor. She held a strong influence over the president's decisions, expressing her concerns when she disagreed with him and providing her input on presidential appointments. She also carried out a reorganization of the White House staff and decor. Inspired by her experience in the Philippines, she converted the White House lawn and the West Potomac Park into social hubs with regular live shows and events. Her decision to plant cherry trees in the park proved to be a success, creating a popular tourist attraction. Taft's influence as first lady was cut short by a stroke two months into her tenure, permanently limiting her mobility and leaving her absent for a year while she partially recovered.
Though President Taft was relieved that his term had ended, Helen Taft was upset by his defeat for reelection. She remained active after leaving the White House, supporting the Red Cross during World War I and participating in activities for the Colonial Dames of America. She was widowed in 1930, and she was buried beside her husband in Arlington National Cemetery after her death in 1943.
Early life
Childhood
Helen Herron was born on June 2, 1861, in Cincinnati as the fourth of eleven children, the daughter of Harriet Collins Herron and lawyer John Williamson Herron. Throughout her life, she went by "Nellie". Her father was an associate of two future presidents: he was a college classmate of Benjamin Harrison and a law partner of Rutherford B. Hayes, while her mother was the daughter and the sister of U.S. congressmen. Growing up around politics, Herron developed a love for campaigning. She was also musically inclined as a child, eventually becoming proficient in the piano.Herron's many siblings, eight of whom survived to adulthood, made life complicated for her family, causing her to develop a personal insecurity and distance herself from her family. As a teenager, Herron would rebel against the societal expectations for upper class women; by the age of 15 she had secretly begun smoking cigarettes, drinking whiskey, and gambling. Seeking a channel for her ambition and independence, she enrolled in Cincinnati's prestigious Miss Nourse School for Girls where she was educated in many subjects, including several languages. She then attended Miami University, and she also briefly attended the University of Cincinnati.
Herron took an interest in law when she was young, often reading her father's legal books at his law office. In 1877, she accompanied her parents when they visited President Hayes and stayed for several weeks at the White House. Her younger sister Lucy Hayes Herron was baptized at that event and named for Mrs. Hayes. This visit instilled in Herron a strong desire to return to the White House as first lady, one that she would often present to her eventual husband.
Early career and courtship
Herron long wished to leave Ohio, feeling that the region offered her little opportunity. She did not consider marriage to be a viable option, believing that matrimony should not be a woman's goal. As a young adult, she worked for her father in his law office. Her debut took place at this time, which she enjoyed despite considering her social obligations to be frivolous. Herron lamented her lack of career options as a woman, eventually taking up teaching as it was the only available career for which she was qualified. She taught French at a private school in Walnut Hills, Ohio for two years beginning in 1881, but she found it unpleasant. She wished to write or perform music, though neither developed into a career for her.Herron first met William Howard Taft at a sledding party in 1880, though the Herron family and the Taft family were familiar with one another. They would go on to perform together as part of the community theater company. In 1884, Herron founded a salon to discuss intellectual topics each Sunday afternoon with other people of her age. Among the people she invited were Taft and his brother Horace. Taft courted Herron, accompanying her to dances and sending her letters and flowers. Self-doubt caused Herron to avoid commitment to Taft, fearing that he did not truly care for her or value her opinions. Taft proposed to her multiple times, and she eventually accepted in June 1885, though she asked that he keep the engagement secret.
Marriage and family
Marriage
Herron married Taft on June 19, 1886. They went on a honeymoon in Europe, spending three months in England before visiting Germany and Italy. She managed the budget on their vacation, limiting their spending to five dollars per day. After returning, her husband borrowed money to have a home built for them in Walnut Hills, and they lived with his parents until it was complete.As a couple, they shared not only an emotional companionship but an intellectual one, and they held high regard for each other's ideas. Her husband would welcome her opinion when she thought he was in error, describing her as his "best critic", and she would sometimes mother him. He generally took her advice, though she failed in her attempts to convince him to live a healthier lifestyle and better control his weight. Taft's husband considered Taft to be the politician of the family, and early in their marriage he expected her to develop a political career that would outpace his own. She managed the finances of the Taft household, and she encouraged her husband's political career, pushing him toward the executive branch rather than his preferred career in the judiciary.
Taft worried about their political future when her husband accepted a five-year term on the Cincinnati Superior Court in 1888, but she was optimistic after he was appointed Solicitor General of the United States in 1890, a position which she had helped him in obtaining through her acquaintance with President Harrison. She saw their move to Washington, D.C., as an opportunity to escape Cincinnati, where she had felt confined, and she hoped that her husband would build connections in Washington politics. She assisted her husband in his presentation in this role, instructing him in oration to better plead cases. She also became a popular socialite in the city and regularly attended Congressional proceedings, both of which allowed her to build political connections. Among her closest friends in Washington were the family of Attorney General William H. H. Miller and the wives of the Supreme Court justices.
They returned to Cincinnati in 1892 when Taft's husband was appointed as a judge on the federal circuit. He enjoyed this position, but Taft again feared that it would stifle his ambition and that he would progress no further. While her husband served on the bench, Taft raised their three children: Robert, born 1889; Helen, born 1891; and Charles, born 1897. She helped found a hospital at this time, and she founded the Cincinnati Orchestra Association, serving as its president. She lamented the lack of excitement in Cincinnati, with her only respite being a vacation home in Murray Bay, Quebec.
Life in the Philippines
Taft's husband was sent to help establish a government in the Philippines in 1900, as Spain had transferred the Philippines to the United States the previous year. Though neither of them knew what the job would entail, Taft encouraged him to accept the position. She relished this opportunity for travel and excitement, stopping in Hawaii and Japan while her husband went on to the Philippines. She also believed that the position would move him closer to the presidency. After Taft arrived in the Philippines, she sought to win the approval of the Filipino people and respect the culture of the Philippines by learning the language, wearing a native Filipino costume, and inviting Filipinos to social events. Taft's treatment of the Filipino people contributed to improved relations with the country, including her work to end the system of racial segregation that had previously been in place.Taft traveled extensively throughout the Philippines, learning how to ride a horse in order to do so. She also accompanied her husband when he traveled to China, Japan, and Hong Kong on official duties. She considered her primary responsibility in the country to be the hosting of gala events, where she would mingle with the Filipino people. Her husband became Governor-General of the Philippines on July 4, 1901, and the Tafts moved into the Malacañang Palace in Manila. While in the Philippines, Taft organized a nutritional program that provided milk for Filipino children. When she wrote her autobiography years later, the majority of her writing addressed her years in the Philippines, overshadowing even her time in the White House.
The Tafts took leave from the Philippines and began a voyage to return home on December 24, 1901. The winter was difficult for Taft, as she was exhausted from the constant stress of her role in the Philippines, compounded by her husband needing two surgeries, and both of her parents suffering from strokes, her mother's proving fatal. Taft accompanied her husband on a trip to Italy in 1902, where she was treated as a guest of honor and was personally received by Pope Leo XIII. She returned to Philippines in September 1902. When President Theodore Roosevelt offered Taft's husband the position of Secretary of War in 1904, Taft convinced him to accept, and the Tafts returned to Washington, D.C.