Page "First Lady of the United States" Paragraph 5

According to legend, Dolley Madison was referred to as " First Lady " in 1849 at her funeral in a eulogy delivered by President Zachary Taylor.

However, no written record of this eulogy exists.

Sometime after 1849, the title began being used in Washington, D. C., social circles.

The earliest known written evidence of the title is from the November 3, 1863, diary entry of William Howard Russell, in which he referred to gossip about " the First Lady in the Land ," referring to Mary Todd Lincoln.

The title first gained nationwide recognition in 1877, when newspaper journalist Mary C. Ames referred to Lucy Webb Hayes as " the First Lady of the Land " while reporting on the inauguration of Rutherford B. Hayes.

The frequent reporting on Lucy Hayes ' activities helped spread use of the title outside Washington.

A popular 1911 comedic play by playwright Charles Nirdlinger, titled The First Lady in the Land, popularized the title further.

By the 1930s it was in wide use.

Use of the title later spread from the United States to other nations.