Wife of President Warren G. Harding and First Lady from 1921 to 1923. ALS signed “Mother,” three pages on two adjoining sheets, 5.25 x 6.75, White House letterhead, no date [postmarked June 24, 1922]. Harding, as First Lady, writes to her daughter-in-law Esther Neely DeWolfe. In part: “Enclosed please find ck. for children July bond interest. Thought I had better send it before I left for Ohio next week…. Mrs. McLean & I are going to slip out to that place on the Conduit Road…. We are now leaving for the McLean country home up at Leesburgh [sic] Va for our Sunday. It’s the old Robt. E. Lee mansion—it’s very attractive.” As a teenager, Florence Kling had a son, Eugene Marshall DeWolfe known as Marshall, with “friend” Henry De Wolfe; though Florence and Henry may have eloped, there is no formal record of a marriage. Eugene later married the recipient of this letter, the former Esther Neely, and the couple had two children. Marshall, a hard drinker and gambler, died before Harding became President, and the check Mrs. Harding refers to is evidently her contribution to the upbringing of her now-fatherless grandchildren. Accompanied by the original mailing envelope addressed in Mrs. Harding’s hand. In fine condition, with usual mailing fold, light toning, and a few ink blots from time of writing. R&R COA.
