Ann Thompson Gerry ( ; August 12, 1763 – March 17, 1849) was the

second lady of the United States The second lady of the United States or second gentleman (SLOTUS or SGOTUS) is the informal title held by the spouse of the vice president of the United States, concurrent with the vice president's term of office. Coined in contrast to " first la ...

from 1813 to 1814 as the wife of

Vice President A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...

Elbridge Gerry Elbridge Gerry ( ; July 17, 1744 – November 23, 1814) was an American Founding Father, merchant, politician, and diplomat who served as the fifth vice president of the United States under President James Madison from 1813 until his death i ...

Life

Ann Thompson was the daughter of James Thompson (1727–1812) a wealthy Irishman who made his fortune in the merchant trade, and Catharine (Walton) Thompson, daughter of a wealthy New Yorker. By 1750, Thompson's business was based in New York City, where Ann was born in 1763. She was educated in

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

, while her older brothers were educated in

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

and eventually joined the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

. Upon completion of her education in the mid-1780s she returned to New York, where some called her "the most beautiful woman in the United States".Billias, George. ''Elbridge Gerry'', p. 147 There she caught the eye of

, a

Marblehead, Massachusetts Marblehead is a coastal New England town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, along the North Shore (Massachusetts), North Shore. Its population was 20,441 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. The town lies on a small peninsu ...

politician twenty years her elder who was serving in the

Confederation Congress The Congress of the Confederation, or the Confederation Congress, formally referred to as the United States in Congress Assembled, was the governing body of the United States from March 1, 1781, until March 3, 1789, during the Confederation ...

. Their romance was apparently well underway by late 1785, and they were married on January 12, 1786, at New York's Trinity Church. The couple had ten children between 1787 and 1801 (three died young). Her husband was frequently concerned over her health, but was also frequently away. The family finances were troubled in the later years of her husband's life; debts that his brother had incurred and Gerry had guaranteed were only paid off from the salary he received as

Vice President of the United States The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest ranking office in the Executive branch of the United States government, executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks f ...

between 1813 and his death in 1814, leaving the widow with an estate that was rich in land and poor in cash. Massachusetts Senator

Christopher Gore Christopher Gore (September 21, 1758 – March 1, 1827) was a prominent Massachusetts lawyer, Federalist Party (United States), Federalist politician, and U.S. diplomat. Born into a family divided by the American Revolution, Gore sided with th ...

proposed that the vice presidential salary would be paid to her for the rest of her life, but Congress rejected the idea because it might set a precedent for such payments. She was thereafter supported by her children, living with her son, James Thompson Gerry, the commander of the USS ''Albany'', and at least two of her daughters at 17 Temple Court, in New Haven. She died in

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound. With a population of 135,081 as determined by the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, New Haven is List ...

on March 17, 1849. She was buried in New Haven's Grove Street Cemetery.''Chapter Sketches: Connecticut DAR''
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References

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Gerry, Ann 1763 births 1849 deaths American people of Irish descent First ladies and gentlemen of Massachusetts People from New York City Second ladies and gentlemen of the United States 19th-century American women