Worst President's Wives, Jane Appleton Pierce

Jane Appleton Pierce, the wife of the fourteenth President, Franklin Pierce, was depressed, it appears, DEPRESSED, so much so, that she had no interest in her social duties at the White House. Mrs. Pierce had no interset in politics, either, preferring to stay in Massachussetts or New Hampshire than in Washington, D. C., and she hated that Franklin was a Congressman prior to becoming President. He got out of politics for awhile, enlisted in the Army and fought in the Mexican War, but he was drafted to run for President on the Democrat ticket. WOE IS ME, thought Mrs. Pierce, MORE POLITICS. WHY CAN'T HE JUST STAY HOME AND BE A NORMAL HUSBAND? WHY OH WHY? I just put words in her mouth that may not be true, but then again, it may be true that she uttered something like that.

She had a baby, a boy, that only survived for three days, her first, and later on after two more boys were born, one was killed in front of her and Mr. Pierce, a tragic thing to witness, and this may be the cause of her attitude toward politics and Washington or she may have been pre-disposed to it, boring, boring, boring, maybe. All three of her children died at an early age, enough for anyone to lose interest in daily life and difficult to get over. However, Wikipedia stated that she has been given credit for beginning the tradition of the Chirstmas tree in the White House, a project she undertook as she finally took up some of the duites of First Lady.

President Pierce with his mind on the problems of his spouse may have let thiis interfere with his duties as President and may not, but it could have had something to do with his being among the worst Presidents or not.

A fine looking woman, if you ask me, but you can see the sorrow in her left eye and the turn of her mouth. (Source: Wikimedia, picture is in the public domain due to copyright expiration.