This oil on canvas painting of Angelica Singleton Van Buren was completed by Henry Inman in 1842. Inman had emerged as one of the top portrait specialists in the 1830s. Angelica was married to Abraham Van Buren, the son of President Martin Van Buren. She filled the role of First Lady during the Van Buren administration because Hannah Van Buren, the wife of President Van Buren, had passed away 18 years prior. At receptions Angelica tried to use the formal rituals practiced at Queen Victoria's court in England, but Washington society used to the informality of the Jackson administration rejected them. Angelica's daughter Rebecca, born in 1840, died a few months later in the White House.