Robert Smith Todd

Robert Smith Todd (February 25, 1791 – July 17, 1849) was an American lawyer, soldier, banker, businessman and politician. He was the father of First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln.

Early life Todd was born on February 25, 1791, in Lexington, a year before Kentucky became a state. He was the third of six sons born to Gen. Levi Todd (1756–1807) and Jane (née Briggs) Todd (1761–1800). A year after his mother's death in 1800, his father remarried to Jane Holmes. Among the eleven children his father had between his two wives, was sister Jane Todd, who married congressman Daniel Breck.

When only fourteen years old, Todd began attending Transylvania College in Lexington, graduating four years later when he was eighteen.

Business and politics After the War ended, Todd began running a dry goods store with his partner, Bird Smith, and frequently traveled to New Orleans to buy French brandies, Dutch gin, and green coffee, which they sold in Lexington and Todd used to entertain many prominent friends with at his home.

Personal life On November 13, 1812, Todd was married to his second cousin, Elizabeth "Eliza" Parker (1794–1825). Eliza was the daughter of Robert Porter Parker, a prominent landowner and merchant who had died in 1800. Eliza's mother, Elizabeth Rittenhouse (née Porter) Parker, a daughter of Col. Andrew Porter did not remarry prior to her death in 1850. Together, Eliza and Robert were the parents of seven children, six of whom survived to maturity, before her death in 1825, from complications during George's birth. Their children were:

Elizabeth Todd (1813–1888), who married Ninian Edwards Jr., the son of the Illinois Governor Ninian Edwards. Levi Oldham Todd (1816–1864), who married Louise Searle and remained in Lexington until his death. Frances Jane Todd (1817–1899), who married Dr. William Smith Wallace. Mary Ann Todd (1818–1882), who married Abraham Lincoln, later the 16th President of the United States. Ann Maria Todd Smith (1820–1891), who married Clark Moulton Smith, a successful merchant. Betsy was the daughter of Dr. Alexander Humphreys and Mary (née Brown) Humphreys. Her maternal uncle was John Brown. (Betsy's uncle, John Brown, was a U.S.) Representative and U.S. Senator from Kentucky who served as President pro tempore of the U.S. Senate. He was the father of Mason Brown (1799–1867), the Secretary of State of Kentucky, and Orlando Brown (1801–1867), the publisher and historian, both first cousins of Betsy. Samuel Brown Todd (1830–1862), a Confederate soldier who was killed on the second day of the Battle of Shiloh. Emilie Pariet Todd (1836–1930), who married Confederate Gen. Benjamin Hardin Helm, and son of the Kentucky Governor John L. Helm. Catherine Bodley Todd (1841–1875), who married William Wallace Herr.