Visiting Wytheville, VA: Home of America’s ‘First Woman President’
A trip to the Blue Ridge Mountains introduces contributor Jackie Sheckler Finch to the historic town of Wytheville, Virginia.
America’s first woman president? More than a century ago, that title was given to a small-town widow.
That was after widower President Woodrow Wilson married widow Edith Bolling Galt. Then her husband suffered a massive stroke in 1919 while he was still in the White House.
For 17 months, Edith Bolling Wilson quietly held the reins of the presidency for the rest of her husband’s term while he was in nearly complete seclusion. Back then, there was no 25th Amendment that established rules of succession. That amendment wasn’t ratified until 1967.
So Edith did what she thought was right. Her role as America’s First Lady became historic and controversial.
Shielding her husband, Edith managed communications with the Cabinet, reviewed correspondence and influenced national decisions. She called that period her “stewardship.”
Some called her “The Secret President” or America’s “First Woman President.”
A Stay At The Bolling Wilson Hotel in Wytheville
On a recent visit to Edith’s hometown of Wytheville, Virginia, I learned about her amazing story and how the town commemorates her. Tucked away in the Blue Ridge Mountains where Interstates 77 and 81 meet, Wytheville is a lovely town with a population of about 8,160.
Founded in 1792 and originally named Evansham, the town was later renamed Wytheville in honor of George Wythe, a signer of the Declaration of Independence and a law professor to George Washington and James Monroe. Wytheville has the honor of being the only town with that name in the whole wide world.
During my one-night stay in Wytheville, I stayed at the historic Bolling Wilson Hotel, named after Edith Bolling Wilson.
Opened in 1927, the 30-room boutique hotel was originally named the George Wythe Hotel—after you know who. Thus, it operated until the mid-1970s when it shut down as a hotel and had several rebirths as a bank.
When the last bank moved out, local residents Bill and Farron Smith purchased the facility in 2010 and transformed it into the elegant hotel it is today. On May 1, 2025, the hotel was named a member of Historic Hotels of America, a prestigious program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
Hotel Décor Featuring Canaries, Orchids and Bourbon
Paying homage to the town’s most prominent citizen, the four-story brick Bolling Wilson Hotel is themed around Edith’s life of “canaries, orchids, and bourbon.” Each of the rooms on the three floors is decorated in a distinct style. My room had a bourbon touch. But no bourbon.
My bed had a lush, dark leather headboard, a comfortable armchair, a large desk with a chair, ample storage space in a dresser and closet, plus a flat-screen TV, and a nice mini-fridge. On the wall opposite the bed was a large framed picture of bourbon barrels.
The bathroom featured a large, glass-enclosed walk-in shower. A note on my bedside table said that my room attendant was named “Edith.” How appropriate, I thought. But when I checked out the next morning, I asked the desk clerk about that. Seems all room attendants are named “Edith,” she told me with a smile.
The Story Behind the Decor
So what is this bourbon bit about Edith? Well, seems the former First Lady was known to enjoy a sip of bourbon on occasion and was said to keep a flask of bourbon in her bedside table.
As for the canaries seen in décor touches around the hotel, Edith did not like canaries, the result of a childhood chore. When Grandmother Bolling came to live with Edith’s family, she brought with her 26 canaries. Under the watchful eye of her grandmother, young Edith was responsible for caring for the canary cages and for giving the birds a proper burial when they died.
Orchids were Edith’s favorite flowers, so the hotel celebrates these vibrant blooms in its décor.
Inside the Edith Bolling Wilson Museum in Wytheville
Across from the hotel is the Edith Bolling Wilson Museum, located in the actual house where Edith was born at 9 a.m. on October 15, 1872. She was the seventh of 11 children born to her parents, Judge William Bolling and his wife, Sally. The family had moved to a commercial building on Main Street in Wytheville after the Civil War.
The museum has a wealth of information and memorabilia about the life of Edith Bolling Wilson. Edith had only two formal years of schooling. The rest of it she learned on her own. Back then, it was more important for the family to spend whatever funds they had to educate Edith’s three younger brothers.
On a visit to Washington, D.C., to see her married sister, Edith met Norman Galt, a prominent jeweler and business owner. Edith was 24 years old when she married Galt at Saint John’s Episcopal Church in Wytheville on April 30, 1896. For the next 12 years, the couple lived in the capital.
The couple had one son, born in September. 23, 1903, but who lived only three days. Edith was unable to have other children. On January 28, 1908, 43-year-old Norman Galt died unexpectedly, and Edith took over the business.
Edith Bolling Meets President Woodrow Wilson
Woodrow Wilson took office as the 28th president of the United States on March 4, 1913. On August 6, 1914, his wife, Ellen Axson Wilson, died of kidney disease. In March 1915, Woodrow met Edith as she was stepping off an elevator. He was smitten immediately and proposed to her two months later.
Although Edith turned down his marriage proposal, Woodrow sent her an orchid a day until she agreed to marry him on June 28, 1915. They were married on December. 18. During World War I, the President and First Lady brought a flock of Shropshire sheep to the White House lawn to be lawnmowers so the grounds crew would be free for wartime service.
Edith later pointed out that the sheep also raised $100,000 for the Red Cross when they were sheared and their wool was sold. The Bolling Wilson Hotel’s restaurant is named Graze on Main as a salute to the Wilson’s White House lawn-grazing sheep.
Some sheep statues outside the Bolling Wilson Hotel also serve as a reminder of the White House sheep. When I was at the hotel, a toddler was attempting to sit on one of the sheep. I doubt if she is the first child ever to try that.
The Death of President Woodrow Wilson
In October 1919, Woodrow Wilson suffered a debilitating stroke that left him paralyzed on the left side and blind in one eye. His health continued to worsen and, until the President’s second term ended 17 months later, Edith took care of her husband and his responsibilities.
When his second term ended on March 4, 1921, Edith spent the next three years as his caregiver. Woodrow Wilson died on February 3, 1924. Edith devoted the rest of her life to promoting her husband’s legacy.
The Passing of Edith Bolling Wilson
Edith’s last visit to Wytheville was in 1960 to dedicate stained glass windows at St. John’s Episcopal Church. She stayed at the historic hotel and visited her childhood home. In 1961, she attended the inauguration of President John F. Kennedy.
On Dec. 28, 1961, on what would have been her husband’s 105th birthday, Edith died of congestive heart failure. She was 89 years old. She was interred with her husband at the Washington National Cathedral. They are the only presidential couple buried in Washington, D.C.
Never know what you might learn on a trip. My intention was to travel the beautiful Blue Ridge Parkway, which I did. Discovering the story of Edith Bolling Wilson was an unexpected treasure.
Disclosure: The author was a guest of Discover Wytheville, but any opinions expressed in this post are her own.
IF YOU GO
For additional information, please contact Visit Wytheville or call (877) 347-8307.
