From Private Mansion to Public Residence: Homes of the First Ladies and Hostesses of Maryland, 1753-present
The Thomas Johnson Family  by Charles Willson Peale 1772, Collection of the C. Burr Artz Library, Frederick, Maryland, on extended loan to The Baltimore Museum of Art MSA SC 4494

As part of the 1995 Summer Internship Program, the Maryland State Archives began a research project dedicated to the study of Maryland's First Ladies and Official Hostesses. This program was inspired by Frances Hughes Glendening, Maryland's former First Lady, who suggested that the Archives explore the lives and achievements of these largely unknown women. It was Mrs. Glendening's exhibition of the state-owned portraits of First Ladies and Official Hostesses in Government House which brought attention to the need for serious research of these women and the contributions they have made to our state's history. The goal of the project was to begin a formalized program for gathering biographical information to provide a basis for continued research devoted to the subject of the First Ladies and Official Hostesses.

To this point, the Maryland State Archives has identified seventy-six women who have been married to a governor of Maryland, or who have held the title of "First Lady" or "Official Hostess" since 1776. Although the Archives' staff started out with little more than these women's names, their biographical files have steadily grown with information about their families, interests, and vocations. The following biographical profiles are the product of the Maryland State Archives' continuing effort to recover and record the lives of these worthy daughters of Maryland. As the Archives' staff uncovers more information, it certainly will be added to the women's profiles. 

Chronological List of Governors, First Ladies, and Official Hostesses

Alphabetical List of First Ladies and Official Hostesses