Anna Morton | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Second Lady of the United States | |
| In role March 4, 1889 – March 4, 1893 | |
| Vice President | Levi P. Morton |
| Preceded by | Eliza Hendricks |
| Succeeded by | Letitia Stevenson |
| First Lady of New York | |
| In role January 1, 1895 – December 31, 1896 | |
| Governor | Levi P. Morton |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Anna Livingston Reade Street (1846-05-18)May 18, 1846 Poughkeepsie, New York, U.S. |
| Died | August 14, 1918(1918-08-14) (aged 72) Rhinecliff, New York, U.S. |
| Resting place | Rhinebeck Cemetery,Rhinebeck, New York |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 6 |
| Relatives | Randall S. Street (grandfather) |
Anna Livingston Reade Morton (néeStreet; May 18, 1846 – August 14, 1918) was the second wife ofVice PresidentLevi P. Morton and thesecond lady of the United States from 1889 to 1893. She was known asAnna Street Morton.
Anna Livingston Reade Street was born on May 18, 1846, inPoughkeepsie, New York, the daughter of William Ingram Street (died 1863) and Susan Watts (née Kearney) Street (1819–1893).
Her paternal grandfather wasRandall S. Street, a lawyer and member of theU.S. House of Representatives. Her uncle wasAlfred Billings Street, a lawyer and prominent poet. Her maternal grandparents were Ann (née Reade) Kearney and Robert Kearney. Through her grandmother Ann, the daughter ofCatherine Livingston and John Reade, she was a descendant ofRobert Livingston the Elder, 1st Lord ofLivingston Manor.[citation needed]
After they married, her husband became a member of theU.S. House of Representatives in 1879, serving until 1881 when he was appointed theUnited States Minister to France by PresidentJames A. Garfield in 1881. Morton was U.S. Minister until May 14, 1885, and Anna was noted for as a highly cultivated French scholar.
During her husband's term asVice President of the United States under PresidentBenjamin Harrison, she wasSecond Lady of the United States from 1889 to 1893 and often handled entertaining duties for the administration due toFirst LadyCaroline Harrison's illness and ultimate death. During this time, the Mortons lived onScott Circle inWashington, D.C., and Mrs. Morton "became the leader of society in Washington, and there was never a more brilliant and popular leader than she. It was her innate graciousness, her innate tact, and her kindness of heart . . . which won her admiration and respect of all".[1]
After the Mortons left Washington, Levi became the Governor of New York and Anna served as theFirst Lady of New York from 1895 to 1896.
In 1873, Anna was married to Levi Parsons Morton (1824–1920), just two years after the death of his first wife, Lucy Young Kimball, in 1871. Together, Anna and Levi had five daughters and a son together. A son, Lewis died at the age of four months in London, and daughters Lena and Alice predeceased their mother.
She died at her home, "Ellerslie" inRhinebeck, New York, on August 14, 1918, at the age of 72.[10]
In December 1904, the Mortons anonymously gave $600,000 to theCathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City. In January 1905,The New York Times revealed that the Mortons were the givers, including funds for the purchase of an organ in memory of their daughter Lena who died in Paris the June previous.[11]
Capt. William Corcoran Eustis, of Washington, D. C., personal secretary to Gen. John J. Pershing during the war, died tonight following the recurrence of an attack of pneumonia contracted in France. He was 60 [sic] years old.
| Honorary titles | ||
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| Vacant Title last held by Eliza Hendricks | Second Lady of the United States 1889–1893 | Succeeded by |