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Barbara Bush

Historical Figure

Barbara Bush

1925–2018

First Lady of the United States from 1989 to 1993

Interwar & WWII

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"Wellesley Commencement Address" — June 1, 1990

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Key Dates

Biography

Barbara Bush was the first lady of the United States from 1989 to 1993, as the wife of George H. W. Bush, the 41st president of the United States. She was previously second lady of the United States from 1981 to 1989, when her husband was vice president under President Ronald Reagan, and founded the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy. Among her children are George W. Bush, the 43rd president of the United States, and Jeb Bush, the 43rd governor of Florida. Bush and Abigail Adams are the only two women to be the wife of one U.S. president and the mother of another. At the time she became first lady, she was the second oldest woman to hold the position, behind only Anna Harrison, who never lived in the capital. Bush was generally popular as first lady, recognized for her apolitical grandmotherly image.

Source: Wikipedia · Compiled March 2026 · AI-summarized

Timeline

1925
Birth

American wife of George H. W. Bush, 41st First Lady of the United States

June 8 →
2018
Death

Barbara Bush, American political matriarch and literacy advocate, First Lady of the United States (1989–1993), and Second Lady of the United States (1981–1989) (born 1925)

April 17 →

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