Jane Harrison ( ''née'' Irwin; July 23, 1804 – May 11, 1845 or 1847) briefly acted as first lady of the United States, performing the duties of presidential hostess during the administration of her father-in-law

William Henry Harrison William Henry Harrison (February 9, 1773April 4, 1841) was an American military officer and politician who served as the ninth president of the United States. Harrison died just 31 days after his inauguration in 1841, and had the shortest pres ...

, the ninth

president of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...

. She was also an aunt-in-law and an aunt of the 23rd president of the United States,

Benjamin Harrison Benjamin Harrison (August 20, 1833March 13, 1901) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 23rd president of the United States from 1889 to 1893. He was a member of the Harrison family of Virginia–a grandson of the ninth pr ...

Family life

Born as Jane Irwin in Mercersburg, Pennsylvania on July 23, 1804, Jane Irwin Harrison was a granddaughter of James Ramsey, the owner of Millmont Farm in

Montgomery Township, Franklin County, Pennsylvania Montgomery Township is a township in Franklin County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 6,116 at the 2010 census, up from 4,949 at the 2000 census. History The township has the name of Richard Montgomery, a general in the American ...

. Note: This includes Her parents, who had been married in 1798, were Archibald Irwin II (1772–1840) and Mary (Ramsey) Irwin (1781–1813). Following her mother's death in 1813, her father remarried, and Jane and her siblings were adopted by their father's second wife, Sidney (Grubb) Irwin (1789–1869). Her father and stepmother later died in 1840 and 1869, respectively.

Marriage and children

Jane Irwin married William Henry Harrison, Jr., a son of General

. The couple had two children: James Findlay Harrison and William Henry Harrison III. In 1838, she was widowed when William Henry Harrison, Jr. died from complications related to alcoholism.

Relationship to a second American president

Her sister, Elizabeth Ramsey Irwin (1810–1850), married

John Scott Harrison John Scott Harrison (October 4, 1804 – May 25, 1878) was an American farmer and politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Ohio. He was a son of U.S. president William Henry Harrison and First Lady An ...

, another son of William Henry Harrison, in

Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wi ...

in 1831.

, Elizabeth's son, later became the 23rd president of the United States.

Filling in for the First Lady

In 1840 William Henry Harrison was elected president. His wife

Anna Anna may refer to: People Surname and given name * Anna (name) Mononym * Anna the Prophetess, in the Gospel of Luke * Anna (wife of Artabasdos) (fl. 715–773) * Anna (daughter of Boris I) (9th–10th century) * Anna (Anisia) (fl. 1218 to 12 ...

was too ill to travel when her husband left

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

for his inauguration, but assisted by her aunt, Jane Irwin Findlay (her father's sister, who was then seventy-three), Jane Irwin Harrison acted as official hostess during President Harrison's brief tenure in office. Barely a month into his first term, he died from

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severi ...

on April 4, 1841.

Death

Jane Irwin Harrison died in her early 40s from

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, i ...

in Cincinnati. While cemetery records indicate that her date of death was May 6, 1847, historians at the National First Ladies' Library have stated that her year of death was 1845.Anthony, "First Ladies Never Married to Presidents: Jane Harrison & Anna Taylor," National First Ladies Library, 2014.

References

External links

Locket photograph misidentified as Jane Irwin Harrison as a widow, 1843
A close examination of the photograph clearly shows a woman who is significantly greater in age than 39. It is most likely a photograph of her foster mother Jane Irwin Findlay. {{DEFAULTSORT:Harrison, Jane Jane Harrison 1804 births 1840s deaths 19th-century American women 19th-century deaths from tuberculosis First ladies of the United States People from Mercersburg, Pennsylvania Tuberculosis deaths in Ohio