Center for Women's History
Women’s history is American history. Bring it into your classroom with our new curriculum!
Major support for Women and the American Story provided by
Robert and Mercedes Eichholz Foundation
Curriculum website and learning experience made possible through a grant from
This program is supported as part of the Dutch Culture USA program by the Consulate General of the Netherlands in New York.
Lead support for New-York Historical's teacher programs provided by
Charles A. Burnett, Photo by Philip Beaurline, Dolley Madison’s Snuffbox, ca. 1800. Silver. Montpelier, a National Trust Historic Site, Bequest of Marion duPont Scott, NT85.2.45.
Resource 4: Parties and Politics
Now the president’s wife, Dolley Madison’s brief letter to her sister recounts the previous night’s party, and reveals how deeply she understood the role her social events played during a chaotic time. Regardless of their politics, people came to the so-called “squeezes”— parties packed tightly with guests—because so much of the unofficial business of government happened there.
