Martha Johnson Patterson

Martha Johnson Patterson (née Johnson; October 25, 1828 – July 10, 1901) was the eldest child of Andrew Johnson, the 17th President of the United States and his wife, Eliza McCardle. She served as the White House hostess during her father's administration and directed the restoration of the White House following the American Civil War. A newspaper article published at the time of her death stated, "'Too much cannot be said in praise of her many virtues.'...president Johnson once told a United States Senator—still living in Washington—that Mrs. Patterson 'was the only child he had who had been a comfort to him, or taken pride in his career.'"

Biography Patterson was born on October 25, 1828, in Greeneville, Tennessee, the eldest of Andrew Johnson and Eliza McCardle's five children.

She married David T. Patterson on December 13, 1855. The couple had two children, a son named Andrew Johnson Patterson (1857–1932) and a daughter named Mary Belle Patterson Landstreet (1859–1891). Mary died during the same year as her father, who died on November 3.

After the American Civil War and the readmission of Tennessee as a state in 1866, her husband was elected to her father's seat in the United States Senate.

Patterson's father, Andrew Johnson became President of the United States after the assassination of Abraham Lincoln in 1865. Her mother, First Lady Eliza McCardle Johnson, suffered from ill health and had little interest in social functions, so Patterson took over hostess responsibilities. Eliza made only two public appearances during her tenure as First Lady. Patterson was a popular figure in Washington and set a friendly tone for White House social functions.

In keeping with her image as a country girl, Patterson brought two Jersey cows to the White House. The cows pastured on the lawn and Patterson milked them daily, "don[ning] a calico dress and a spotless apron." Patterson oversaw a $30,000 renovation of the White House.

The consequences of restricted friendships and an invalid wife were that, in his late years, as in the White House, Johnson leaned heavily on his older daughter, Martha, Mrs. David Patterson. She lived on a large farm, a few miles away, which her father had bought for her. Martha was a refined, thoughtful woman, and in the eyes of her father was almost the only faithful and devoted ally whom calumny could not change nor misfortune alienate. As a friend expressed it: "To her undying loyalty he gave his complete confidence. She loved him with a flaming devotion that must have been balm to his wounded spirit as he breasted the storm of hate that rose in opposition to his heroic efforts to save America for Americans." In later life she lived on a farm near Greeneville, and worked to preserve the overall legacy of her father. m. December 3, 1889, Martha Ellen "Mattie" Barkley† (May 28, 1864 – March 23, 1948) Margaret Johnson Patterson† (September 29, 1903 – August 1, 1992) m. June 13, 1949, William Thaw Bartlett (1876 – 1954) — No apparent/known issue. Mary Belle Patterson† (November 11, 1858 – July 9, 1891) m. February 7, 1886, John Landstreet Jr. m. May 8, 1907, Robert J. Willingham (1875 – 1953) Martha Belle Willingham Colt Elizabeth Landstreet Willingham Crump — Married, had issue. † indicates individual is buried in family burial plot at Andrew Johnson National Cemetery.

Andrew Johnson Patterson Martha and David's son Andrew J. Patterson managed a family-owned cotton mill at Bluff City, Tennessee for a time, and then ran a joint-stock company that established the Jonesboro cotton mills. He also ran a flour mill and was elected a member of the Tennessee State Legislature. In 1894 Grover Cleveland appointed him consul to Demerara, British Guiana, a post he held until at least 1897.

The last Johnson family member buried in the Andrew Johnson National Cemetery was Martha Johnson Patterson's descendant Margaret Johnson Patterson Bartlett. After her father died, Margaret Bartlett inherited and curated the Johnson legacy for the rest of her life. She was also interviewed about the family over the years, such as on the occasion of the death of William Andrew Johnson, when she told reporters that William Andrew was the only one of Dolly Johnson's children to be born in Greeneville. Bartlett told interviewers about her father selectively burning letters prior to donating Andrew Johnson's correspondence to the Library of Congress. Bartlett commented, "...things that he thought was nobody's business, he'd burn them. And I'm glad he did. And here are some of these historians who are grabbers and like to feature that stuffthe fire has consumed them! And I'm glad of it. It's family. Private!" Researchers can only speculate but not know that "perhaps intimate letters between family members revealed the identity(ies) of the father of Dolly’s offspring."

As the reputation of Andrew Johnson and his role in the failure of Reconstruction is reevaluated by historians, Bartlett's role as the "foremost figure behind Greeneville's interpretation of Johnson from 1958 until 1993" is also being reassessed.

Mary Belle Patterson Landstreet Martha and David's daughter Belle Patterson was in school in the north circa 1878. After Belle died of "a throat trouble" in California, her widower and their daughter were living in Patterson's house in Greeneville circa 1893. The only known living legitimate biological descendants of Andrew Johnson are through Martha > Belle > Martha > Martha and Elizabeth.

Legacy In the 1982 Siena College Research Institute asking historians to assess American first ladies, Patterson and several other non-spousal White House hostesses were included. The first ladies survey, which has been conducted periodically since, ranks first ladies according to a cumulative score on the independent criteria of their background, value to the country, intelligence, courage, accomplishments, integrity, leadership, being their own women, public image, and value to the president. In the 1982 survey, out of 42 first ladies and other White House hostesses, Patterson was assessed as the 32nd most highly regarded among historians. Non-spousal White House hostesses such as Patterson have been excluded from subsequent iterations of this survey.