Dorothea Dandridge Henry

Upon her marriage to the sitting governor, Patrick Henry, 20-year-old Dorothea became the inaugural First Lady of Virginia from 1777 to 1779, during the American Revolution.^[5] The marriage was regarded as a wise match that helped solidify support for Henry in the Commonwealth, especially given that Dorothea belonged to an old and prominent Virginia family.^[6][7]

Mrs. Henry lived with her husband at the Governor's Palace in Williamsburg, Virginia. With the support of her cousin, Martha Washington, Mrs. Henry helped raise funds and support for the Virginia militia.^[8] Dorothea has been described as serving in the role of First Lady with grace and tact.^[1]

After Henry's first term as governor, they resided at the Leatherwood Plantation in Henry County, Virginia from 1779 to 1784. In 1784, Henry returned to the governor's office, and they moved to the new capitol of Richmond, Virginia.^[6]

In 1794, they retired to the Red Hill plantation and estate, comprising nearly 3,000 acres in Charlotte County.^[9]

Dorothea married Patrick Henry on October 9, 1777, at the age of 20 at Fork Church.^[3] They had 11 children, but only 9 lived to adulthood.^[10] Combined with the 6 children from Patrick's first marriage to Sarah Shelton, they raised a total of 15 children.^[11] After Patrick Henry's death in 1799, Dorothea married Judge Edmund Winston in 1802. He was a first cousin of Henry and had been an executor of his estate.^[12]

In his will, Henry gave his wife Dorothea his Red Hill estate along with 20 slaves of her choosing. He also gave her permission to free one or two of them if she desired. By 1805, she had freed at least five through manumission.^[13]

Combined with Winston's 6 children with his late wife, they had 21 children in their blended family, many of whom were adults at the time of their marriage.^[14]

Dorothea died in 1831 at her daughter's home at Seven Islands plantation in Halifax County, Virginia at the age of 75.^[1][11] She was buried at Red Hill next to her first husband. The Dorothea Henry Chapter of the Virginia Daughters of the American Revolution is named in her honor.^[15]