American Presidents






James Madison: Life Portrait

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1 hr. 21 mins.
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    • LIFE FACTS

    Personal

    First Lady: Dolley Madison, Wife

    Wife's Maiden Name: Dolley Payne Todd

    Number of Children: None

    Education Level: College

    School Attended: Princeton University

    Religion: Episcopalian

    Profession:
    Farmer, Planter

    Military Service:
    Colonel

    Public Service

    Dates of Presidency: 3/4/1809 - 3/3/1817

    Presidency Number: 4

    Number of Terms: 2

    Why Presidency Ended: End of 2nd term

    Party: Democratic-Republican

    His Vice President(s): George Clinton, Elbridge Gerry

    Cabinet Service: Secretary of State (Thomas Jefferson, 1801-1809)

    House of Representatives: Virginia (1789-1797)

    Colonial Government: VA House of Delegates (1776-1777), Continental Congress (1780-1783)

    Other Offices: Virginia House of Delegates; Delegate to the Virginia Convention; Member of the Council of State; Delegate to the Annapolis Convention

    Footnotes  
    Methodology  &  Resources


    Did You Know?

    • He was president during the War of 1812 which his critics dubbed "Mr. Madison's War."
    • He was a central figure in the development of the United States Constitution and kept the most complete notes of anyone at the Constitutional Convention.
    • Both of his vice presidents died in office.
    • Madison stood close to five feet five inches and weighed one hundred pounds.

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    James Madison: Life Portrait Video Clip List

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    James Madison Program
    Video Clip List - Part 1 of 2
    Clip # Start Time End Time Description
    1 1:16 2:32 Jack Rakove, a professor at Stanford discusses unique characteristics of Madison.
    Watch Clip 1
    2 4:20 8:07 Rakove discusses the life of Madison and Port Conway, VA.
    3 8:20 13:48 Discusses the relationship between Madison and Jefferson.
    Watch Clip 3
    4 14:05 16:05 Commentary on the character of Madison.
    5 16:07 19:51 Mullin gives information about the Montpelier estate.
    6 25:00 26:11 Mullin discusses the Madison Gazebo.
    7 26:12 27:14 Tour of Madison house and a brief description of projects currently underway in the house.
    8 29:56 30:28 Holly Schulman discusses physical attributes of Dolley Madison, James Madison's wife.
    9 30:52 31:43 Shulman discusses Dolley's life prior to marrying Madison.
    10 36:40 40:45 Discusses the selling of the Montpelier Estate. Also addresses a debt problem that Dolley had.
    11 40:45 41:41 Another tour of the Madison house
    12 41:42 43:22 Discusses Dolley's death and the possible plan of her image being imbedded in US currency.
    13 43:45 44:53 Mullin discusses alterations made to a replica of the Madison house for a presentation to the public.
    14 47:04 47:52 Discusses the slaves who resided on the Madison estate. Visual of slave gravesite is also provided.
    15 47:57 48:24 The types of social events that First Lady Dolley Madison would have had in the back of the Madison home.
    16 50:01 53:14 Discusses the evolution of the Madisons in America in response to a caller seeking to find the genealogy of the Madison family.
    Watch Clip 16
    17 53:59 56:49 Discussion of Madison's belief in God.
    18 56:50 59:35 A timeline of James Madison's political career.
    19 59:54 1:04:26 Interview with a teacher from James Madison High School in Vienna, VA.
    20 1:05:54 1:09:11 Discussion of other documents spearheaded by Madison as well as his involvement in the creation of the Constitution.
    21 1:09:28 1:12:12 Lynne Lewis gives an introduction to the research done on the bedroom of Dolley Madison and the architecture of the Madison house.
    22 1:12:13 1:15:54 Discussion about the relationship between James and Dolley Madison.
    23 1:16:15 1:17:29 Shulman discusses Dolley's only photograph and her fascination with Congress.
    24 1:19:03 1:21:53 Addresses Madison's party affiliation and distinguishes 1800 republican beliefs from contemporary republican beliefs after comment is given by a caller (unclear call).
    Watch Clip 24
    James Madison Program
    Video Clip List - Part 2 of 2
    Clip # Start Time End Time Description
    1 0:23 1:21 Lynne Lewis continues her tour of Dolley Madison's bedroom.
    2 2:08 2:37 Explains Dolley's fabric preferences for the Madison home.
    3 2:42 4:41 Discusses the term "first lady" and the remodeling that the Madisons did to give the White House more of a national stature.
    Watch Clip 3
    4 4:42 6:45 Discussion of Madison's vice presidents.

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