First Lady: Florence Harding

Florence Harding was born August 15, 1860 in Marion, Ohio. She was the daughter of a store owner and real estate developer, Amos Kling. Florence was the oldest of 3 children, and the only female child in her family. Most people would usually associate her first and foremost with her husband Warren G. Harding, but Florence did more than just her First Lady responsibilities. She had a very interesting life prior to marriage and after the death of her husband. (NFFL)

Prior to her marriage to Warren G. Harding, Florence attended the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music. She had the dream of becoming a concert pianist, and her family supported those dreams. This also became a source of income for her in the 1880s, as a piano teacher for local families, though her dreams of becoming an accomplished concert pianist were never fully realized. She had one marriage by common law to Mr. Henry DeWolfe, with whom she had one son. He abandoned his family, and she filed for divorce, which eventually lead her to become a piano teacher for income purposes. In married Warren G. Harding in 1891, this time with a wedding, and not just as a common law arrangement.

After her marriage to Harding, the then owner of the Marion Star newspaper in Marion, Ohio, she became the business manager of the paper. This would have been a big deal for a woman to be helping to run a business at this level. She used her knowledge of cartography to map out delivery routes and plan distribution. (NFLL) She also hired the first woman reporter in the state of Ohio to work for a newspaper. As business manager of the newspaper, this gave Florence the opportunity to meet public figures and politicians as they came to meet with Warren, who would later become a two-term state senator, the Lieutenant Governor of Ohio, a United States senator and the President of the United States. Florence practically ran the campaigns, and managed the finances, fundraising, social and political gatherings and much more. She was the first wife of a US President to have such a job, and took pride in her work.

Florence was an opinionated woman, and had no qualms about sharing her opinions with her husband. She was noted for being vehemently against the League of Nations and in favor of women’s suffrage. She believed that women had a place in the world, and that place was not to sit back and do as they were told, but to strive for success. She used anecdotes of her own life to support these claims. Florence also weighed in on Presidential Cabinet appointments, and did a lot of behind the scenes work to get people to accept these positions. (NFFL) Florence wanted women across the country to understand the government that they were no eligible to vote for. It was important to her that now that women had the right to vote, that they used this right judiciously. This also lead to her hosting many women in the White House to show off the professionalism of women. Some of the guests included Marie Curie, future female political appointees and female athletes at her tennis tournament.

At one point during their tenure in the White House, Florence became very ill. It was found that she suffered from kidney disease that caused a “floating kidney.” She spent nearly 2 decades fighting this illness, and it would eventually lead to her death in 1924 at the age of 64. Florence was a major advocate of homeopathic medicine, which she used for her own treatment, and would lead to the death of her husband on an ill-advised trip across the country. There were rumors that Florence had poisoned her husband, or killed him with the help of her very own doctor, Dr. Boone, but these were never confirmed. There have also been suggestions that it was some sort of suicide, or that he died of depression, but the most common consensus is that he had a massive heart attack which eventually lead to a stroke and congestive heart failure, but nearly 100 years later, this has never been confirmed. (History Stories)

Though Florence Harding may be remembered for being a strong, independent and opinionated woman, she fought many battles for women’s rights. She had some odd views in terms of healthcare, such as her interest in homeopathic remedies, but she supported the advancement of woman’s rights in the United States, and she felt it was her job to see these things come to fruition, and she made sure that some of them did.

I chose to focus on her running the Marion Star as business manager for her husband Warren G. Harding, the owner of the paper. As previously mentioned, Florence Harding was the business manager for the Marion Star. Florence was not writing, or editing stories for the newspaper, but she did get to help make the choices on who and what made the cut for the paper. (NFFL) She also created a circulation department, and helped them to map out where the paper would be distributed as well as the easiest way to deliver the newspaper to more people, and thus increase profit for the paper. (NFFL) Florence decided not to take a salary in addition to her husbands, but they opened a joint account, something that may seem to be strange based on her advocacy of women professionals. During her tenure as Business Manager of the paper, she also hired and trained the newsboys, implemented a rewards system and made negotiations to acquire printing equipment at a lower cost. (NFFL) Florence was intent on making the paper profitable, and she instated a policy of dropping non-paying customers after 3 weeks, she handled complaints personally and she also did some of the maintenance repairs herself, because she wanted to save money and she knew how to do the work. (NFFL) Florence, as the business manager, was trusted to do these tasks. She also kept the sole records of business interests and finances. While Warren was sick, she was running the paper, and it became even more successful with her at the helm. She made several key decisions, one of which included subscribing to world news wires that would allow the Marion Star to have access to world news within 24 hours of the event, and this increased their profits. (NFFL)

The reason that Florence Harding becoming business manager is important is because at the time, 1894-1906 (NFFL) women did not have jobs like this. Women were still homemakers, teachers and did not really have many interests or holdings in the business world. Florence took over as business manager of her husband’s newspaper when he fell ill, and was battling depression and illness. She took over command of a profitable and longstanding business and implemented changes that drastically increased their profit. (NFFL) At the time, this was unheard of. It is also possible that Florence’s success as the business manager lead her to feeling like she could share her opinions with her husband. This was important as well, because it ultimately lead to cabinet positions being filled, business decisions, and some policy changes as her behest.

Florence Harding was the beginning of the face of change for First Ladies in the United States. She began to make decisions, not about china patterns and as a hostess, but as a leading lady in American history, who was taking an active role in the politics and policies of the country. Florence Harding brought her strong will and stubbornness with her into her marriage to Warren Harding, but it seems that she was a shrewd businesswoman, and this allowed her to make changes and steer America towards more openness to women’s rights and began to open the US and the world to women professionals on a world stage. She had a humble beginning, being a piano teacher from Ohio, but in her 64 years, Florence became a force to be reckoned with, and helped to advance women’s rights making her an influential public figure in not only Ohio History, but United States history as well.

 

Bibliography

Greenspan, Jesse. “The Unexpected Death of President Harding, 90 Years Ago.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 2 Aug. 2013, www.history.com/news/the-unexpected-death-of-president-harding-90-years-ago.

Deppisch, Ludwig M., and Connie Mariano. The Health of the First Ladies: Medical Histories from Martha Washington to Michelle Obama. McFarland & Compan Publishers, 2015.

“First Lady Biography: Florence Harding.” Florence Harding Biography :: National First Ladies' Library, The National First Ladies' Library, www.firstladies.org/biographies/firstladies.aspx?biography=30.