Biography

"Mrs. Dandridge was in the eighty-sixth year of her age, having been born at what is now Fort Snelling, on the Mississippi River, in Minnesota, on April 20, 1824. She was the third daughter of President Taylor. Mrs. Dandridge's mother was Margaret Mackall Smith, a member of a distinguished Maryland family. Her first husband was Col. William Wallace Bliss, whom she married in 1848. Colonel Bliss died near New Orleans on August 5, 1853.
"As Mrs. Bliss Mrs. Dandridge presided over the White House at Washington during the 16 months her father was president, her mother being an invalid. She was noted for her grace and charm and the elegance of her entertainments.
"Some years after the death of Colonel Bliss she married Philip Pendleton Dandridge, member of the prominent Virginia family of that name and came to WinChester to live in 1858. Her second husband died in 1882."