Ellen Lewis Herndon Arthur

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Image:Ellen Lewis Herndon Arthur.jpg Ellen Lewis Arthur (nee Herndon) (1837 - 1880) was the wife of the 21st U.S. President Chester A. Arthur. The daughter of William Lewis and Frances Elizabeth Hansbrough Herndon, she was born and raised in Virginia. Her father was killed at sea when Ellen was still young. She met Chester A. Arthur in New York City en route to visit her widowed mother, and after a brief courtship, they were married in 1859. She eventually gave birth to three children. Being from the South, she was often chastised by northerners during the Civil War, and eventually sank into depression. She always feared the worst for her husband, but it was she who died first; returning from the opera in 1880, she cought a cold, and fell into a coma. Arthur, who was away on business, never saw her alive again.

Captain William Lewis Herndon was carrying tons of gold and pasengers from the Gulf side of the Atlantic. People were heavily laden with freshly minted coins. The gold was recovered by the Columbia Discovery group of Ohio, The SS Central America, on her 44th trip, was the ship caught in a three day and three night hurricane off Carolina at Cape hatteras known as the Graveyard of the Atlantic with over 300 ships subk there. Captain Herndon managed to save all women, children, and some of the men but refused to leave the last of the men on the SS Central America. He donned his best uniform, came back topside, stood at the ship's wheel and removed his hat as he prayed and the ship sank beneath the fierce waves around him. She is 200 miles down. It was the survivors of that shipwreck, America's richest shipwreck, that named Herndon, Virginia.

She was introduced to Chester A. Arthur by a friend in New York City when visiting her widowed mother, and after a brief courtship, they were married in 1859. She eventually gave birth to three children. Being from Virginia, Ellen was often chastised by northerners and some of her kin during the Civil War, since her husband was a northern general.

Ellen died before her husband took office, as she stepped outside into the night air after an opera in 1880, she cought a chill, and fell into a coma. Arthur, who was away on business, never saw her alive again. His sister became the unofficial First Lady and did well with it. She also looked after Chester & Ellen's children.

After taking office as president, Chester A. Arthur had a view of a church and had a stained glass window dedicaded to Ellen where he could view it at night as the lights were kept on.

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