Title: Oil portrait of Martha Dandridge Custis Washington

Description: In 1878, eighty years after Gilbert Stuart painted George Washington’s portrait, Eliphalet Frazer Andrews painted this portrait of Martha Washington. To paint the head, Andrews copied an earlier painting of the first lady by Stuart, but to paint the rest of the figure he used a live model. The dress is a style Mrs. Washington would never have known. Congress purchased the portrait for $3,000 to hang in the East Room with President Washington’s portrait.

Date: 1878

Creator: Eliphalet F. Andrews

Credit: White House Historical Association (White House Collection)