Varina Anne Davis
Encyclopedia
Varina Anne "Winnie" Davis (June 27, 1864 - September 18, 1898) was an American author. A daughter of President of the Confederate States of America
, Jefferson Davis
, she became known as "Daughter of the Confederacy", for her appearances with her father on behalf of Confederate veterans' groups.
in the White House of the Confederacy in Richmond, Virginia
. She was the second daughter and the sixth child of Varina Banks Howell Davis and Jefferson Finis Davis. The youngest, she was the only child of the family who was allowed to visit her father in Fort Monroe
with her mother during his two years of imprisonment that followed the Civil War.
Varina Davis, called Winnie, was home-educated by her mother in her early years. She later accompanied her parents on their numerous journeys. At the age of twelve, she was sent to the Institute Friedländer in Karlsruhe
, Germany. She studied for more than five years in the renowned boarding school. Later, she attended a boarding school in Paris for a short while before returning to the United States.
. Like her mother, she was active as a painter, musician and author. Under the name of Varina Anne Jefferson Davis, she published articles in periodicals, three novels and a biographical monograph. In it she declared it to be a folly to send children to Europe to be educated.
On a visit in Atlanta, Georgia
in 1886, Governor John Brown Gordon
anointed her as "The Daughter of the Confederacy". This title stuck, and Davis became an icon for Confederate veteran groups. Together with her aging father, she made public appearances and held speeches, and gradually acted as his representative. This was a period when Confederate groups, including women's associations, worked to memorialize the war and the cause of the South.
Davis was involved in a few well known romantic relationships, but never married. In 1885-1886, she was courted by noted landscape and portrait artist Verner Moore White
, but the relationship ended when White moved to Europe
to further his studies in art. In 1887, Davis developed a relationship with the New York attorney Alfred C. Wilkinson, whom she met in Syracuse, New York
. When she announced her engagement to the "Yankee" in 1889, an outcry in the South
burdened the romance. The engagement was ended soon after.
In 1891, Davis moved together with her widowed mother to New York City, where they both worked as correspondents for the New York World. The paper had first offered her mother a salary for a weekly article, and hired her under the same arrangement.
In 1898 Davis died in the home of a friend Narragansett Pier, Rhode Island
after an illness of several weeks and probably related to malaria
. She was 34 years old. She was buried with military honors in Richmond, Virginia, because of her service to Confederate veterans' groups, next to the grave of her father. She was survived by her mother and by her sister and her sister's family.
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
, Jefferson Davis
Jefferson Davis
Jefferson Finis Davis , also known as Jeff Davis, was an American statesman and leader of the Confederacy during the American Civil War, serving as President for its entire history. He was born in Kentucky to Samuel and Jane Davis...
, she became known as "Daughter of the Confederacy", for her appearances with her father on behalf of Confederate veterans' groups.
Childhood
Varina Anne Davis was born one year before the end of the American Civil WarAmerican Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
in the White House of the Confederacy in Richmond, Virginia
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...
. She was the second daughter and the sixth child of Varina Banks Howell Davis and Jefferson Finis Davis. The youngest, she was the only child of the family who was allowed to visit her father in Fort Monroe
Fort Monroe
Fort Monroe was a military installation in Hampton, Virginia—at Old Point Comfort, the southern tip of the Virginia Peninsula...
with her mother during his two years of imprisonment that followed the Civil War.
Varina Davis, called Winnie, was home-educated by her mother in her early years. She later accompanied her parents on their numerous journeys. At the age of twelve, she was sent to the Institute Friedländer in Karlsruhe
Karlsruhe
The City of Karlsruhe is a city in the southwest of Germany, in the state of Baden-Württemberg, located near the French-German border.Karlsruhe was founded in 1715 as Karlsruhe Palace, when Germany was a series of principalities and city states...
, Germany. She studied for more than five years in the renowned boarding school. Later, she attended a boarding school in Paris for a short while before returning to the United States.
Daughter of the Confederacy
During the 1880s, Davis lived with her parents in their house near Biloxi, MississippiBiloxi, Mississippi
Biloxi is a city in Harrison County, Mississippi, in the United States. The 2010 census recorded the population as 44,054. Along with Gulfport, Biloxi is a county seat of Harrison County....
. Like her mother, she was active as a painter, musician and author. Under the name of Varina Anne Jefferson Davis, she published articles in periodicals, three novels and a biographical monograph. In it she declared it to be a folly to send children to Europe to be educated.
On a visit in Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...
in 1886, Governor John Brown Gordon
John Brown Gordon
John Brown Gordon was one of Robert E. Lee's most trusted Confederate generals during the American Civil War. After the war, he was a strong opponent of Reconstruction and is thought by some to have been the titular leader of the Ku Klux Klan in Georgia during the late 1860s. A member of the...
anointed her as "The Daughter of the Confederacy". This title stuck, and Davis became an icon for Confederate veteran groups. Together with her aging father, she made public appearances and held speeches, and gradually acted as his representative. This was a period when Confederate groups, including women's associations, worked to memorialize the war and the cause of the South.
Davis was involved in a few well known romantic relationships, but never married. In 1885-1886, she was courted by noted landscape and portrait artist Verner Moore White
Verner Moore White
Verner Moore White , born Thomas Verner Moore White but informally known as Verner White, was an American landscape and portrait painter...
, but the relationship ended when White moved to Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
to further his studies in art. In 1887, Davis developed a relationship with the New York attorney Alfred C. Wilkinson, whom she met in Syracuse, New York
Syracuse, New York
Syracuse is a city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States, the largest U.S. city with the name "Syracuse", and the fifth most populous city in the state. At the 2010 census, the city population was 145,170, and its metropolitan area had a population of 742,603...
. When she announced her engagement to the "Yankee" in 1889, an outcry in the South
Southern United States
The Southern United States—commonly referred to as the American South, Dixie, or simply the South—constitutes a large distinctive area in the southeastern and south-central United States...
burdened the romance. The engagement was ended soon after.
In 1891, Davis moved together with her widowed mother to New York City, where they both worked as correspondents for the New York World. The paper had first offered her mother a salary for a weekly article, and hired her under the same arrangement.
In 1898 Davis died in the home of a friend Narragansett Pier, Rhode Island
Narragansett Pier, Rhode Island
Narragansett Pier is an unincorporated village and a census-designated place in the town of Narragansett in Washington County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 3,671 at the 2000 census.-Geography:...
after an illness of several weeks and probably related to malaria
Malaria
Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease of humans and other animals caused by eukaryotic protists of the genus Plasmodium. The disease results from the multiplication of Plasmodium parasites within red blood cells, causing symptoms that typically include fever and headache, in severe cases...
. She was 34 years old. She was buried with military honors in Richmond, Virginia, because of her service to Confederate veterans' groups, next to the grave of her father. She was survived by her mother and by her sister and her sister's family.