(IDA S. MCKINLEY)
(1848 - 1907) First Lady, wife of William McKinley, 25th U.S. President. Good content secretarially written and signed letter on her monogrammed mourning letterhead, Canton, Mar. 12, 1906, to her niece Katherine "Kittie" Endsley Mathews. In part: "...I am as well as usual but still as unhappy. Last week I went to the theater on Monday evening I saw 'The Man on the Box' and on Friday evening, 'The Virginian'. I do not take interest in anything anymore but going to the theater occasionally takes my mind off my trouble for a little while..." With a second secretarial letter, 3pp. 8vo., Canton, Sep. 22, 1903, also to Mathews being an affectionate letter with family news, and inquiring about her next visit. Sold with four stereoscopic slides concerning McKinley's death, two showing the late president and his wife surrounded by flowers, the other two being a portrait of McKinley and a view of his cortege. Latter two images just good. Along with commemorative postcards, local invitation to a memorial service, statue unveiling, etc. Mrs. McKinley did not have any surviving children, both daughters having died in infancy. Their deaths greatly impacted her health, already fragile, and she developed epilepsy. She relied heavily on her nieces and extended family members for support; her relationship to niece "Kittie" was particularly close. Fine.