Presidential Wives: Caroline Carmichael Fillmore

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Caroline Carmichael McIntosh Fillmore was the second wife of President Millard Fillmore.

Caroline Carmichael Fillmore

The couple married after he left the White House and she never actually served in the role of First Lady.

Caroline Carmichael was born on October 21, 1813 in Morristown, New Jersey. She was the daughter of Charles and Temperance Blachley Carmichael.

In November 1832, she married Ezekiel C. McIntosh, he was a merchant and president of a railroad. The couple had no children and his death in 1855 left her very wealthy.

Caroline married Millard Fillmore on February 10, 1858 in Albany, New York. At their marriage, she required Millmore sign a prenuptial agreement. The couple purchased a mansion in Buffalo, New York. President Fillmore’s unmarried son, Millard, lived with the couple. President Fillmore’s first wife, Abigail, and daughter, Abbey, had both died within the last five years.  

Caroline is said to greatly enjoy her status as wife of a former president.

By the 1860s, her mental and physical health began to decline.

President Fillmore enjoyed good health until less than a month before his death when he suffered a stroke. President Fillmore died in March 1874. Upn his death she received the presidential widow’s pension.

After his death, a legal battle ensued between the Fillmore family and Caroline over the president’s estate.

With the passage of time, Caroline Fillmore is said to become very eccentric and tempromential. She is also said to change her will on a frequent basis.

Caroline Carmichael Fillmore died on August 11, 1881 at the age of 67. She is buried in Forest Lawn Cemetery, with President Fillmore and his first family.

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