Mary Custis Lee

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Mary Custis Lee

Birthdate:
Birthplace: Arlington House, Arlington, Arlington County, Virginia, United States
Death: November 22, 1918 (83)
Homestead Hotel, Hot Springs, Bath County, Virginia, United States
Place of Burial: Lexington, Rockbridge County, Virginia, United States
Immediate Family:

Daughter of Gen. Robert E. Lee, CSA and Mary Ann Randolph Lee
Sister of Major Gen. George Washington Custis Lee (CSA); Maj. Gen. William Henry Fitzhugh Lee, CSA; Anne Carter Fairweather; Capt. Robert "Rob" E. Lee, Jr. (CSA); Mildred Childe Lee and 17 others

Managed by: James Hutchison
Last Updated:

About Mary Custis Lee

Mary Custis Lee (1835–1918) was the eldest daughter of General Robert E. Lee (1807–1870) and Mary Anna Randolph (Custis) Lee (1807–1873) of Arlington House in what is now Arlington, Va. Very close to her father, she never married and traveled the world and the United States after her parents' deaths.

Mary was the second child and first daughter of Confederate General Robert E. Lee and his wife, Mary Anna Custis Lee and she outlived all of her siblings. Mary was recorded as being the most aloof and outspoken of the Lee children and she assumed little, if any, of the responsiblity of helping to run the large Lee household; she was also regarded as "stern" and "bossy" and preferred to be "away from home" much of the time. She loved to travel so much that, in her later years, she roamed the globe almost continuously, collecting visiting cards from nobility and was overseas when World War One began. Mary has the distinction of being partially responsible for her father's move to Lexington, VA and his acceptance of the Presidency of Washington College there and she also has the distinction of being the first person to be cremated and interred in Lexington. After the deaths of her brothers and sisters, Mary was proud to announce to anyone who would listen that she was "the last surviving child of General Robert E. Lee."

Birth: Jul. 12, 1835 Arlington Arlington County Virginia, USA Death: Nov. 22, 1918 Hot Springs Bath County Virginia, USA

Mary was the second child and first daughter of Confederate General Robert E. Lee and his wife, Mary Anna Custis Lee and she outlived all of her siblings. Mary was recorded as being the most aloof and outspoken of the Lee children and she assumed little, if any, of the responsiblity of helping to run the large Lee household; she was also regarded as "stern" and "bossy" and preferred to be "away from home" much of the time. She loved to travel so much that, in her later years, she roamed the globe almost continuously, collecting visiting cards from nobility and was overseas when World War One began. Mary has the distinction of being partially responsible for her father's move to Lexington, VA and his acceptance of the Presidency of Washington College there and she also has the distinction of being the first person to be cremated and interred in Lexington. After the deaths of her brothers and sisters, Mary was proud to announce to anyone who would listen that she was "the last surviving child of General Robert E. Lee."

Family links:

Parents:
 Robert Edward Lee (1807 - 1870)
 Mary Anna Randolph Custis Lee (1808 - 1873)

Siblings:

 George Washington Custis Lee (1832 - 1913)*
 Mary Custis Lee (1835 - 1918)
 William Henry Fitzhugh Lee (1837 - 1891)*
 Anne Carter Lee (1839 - 1862)*
 Anne Carter Lee (1839 - 1862)**
 Eleanor Agnes Lee (1841 - 1873)*
 Robert Edward Lee (1843 - 1914)*
 Mildred Childe Lee (1845 - 1905)*

*Calculated relationship

  • *Half-sibling

Burial: Lee Chapel Museum Lexington Lexington City Virginia, USA

Created by: Kathleen Record added: Nov 15, 2003 Find A Grave Memorial# 8090458


Mary Custis Lee (Mary, "Daughter"); 1835–1918; unmarried

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Mary Custis Lee's Timeline

1835
July 12, 1835
Arlington House, Arlington, Arlington County, Virginia, United States
1918
November 22, 1918
Age 83
Homestead Hotel, Hot Springs, Bath County, Virginia, United States
????
Lee Chapel, Washington and Lee University, Lexington, Rockbridge County, Virginia, United States