12. Only a handful of witnesses were there to see Julia become Mrs Tyler but the secret was soon out
Exactly a year after President Tyler first proposed to Julia, he did so again – and this time got a positive response. He popped the question at the 1844 George Washington Ball at the White House. By this point, East Coast society was full of rumors about the pair’s alleged romance since they had been spending so much time together. However, while nobody could doubt the President’s infatuation with Julia, he nevertheless agreed to a low-key wedding. At 54-years-old, Tyler ‘eloped’ with his young bride.
Just 12 guests were present for what otherwise would have been the society event of the year. Among those present at the Church of the Ascension in New York City on 26 June 1844 was the President’s son, though several of his other children missed their father’s big day. The small wedding party then enjoyed a low-key reception (since they were still in mourning for Julia’s father) at the Gardiner family home. The newlyweds then went on a decidedly-unromantic honeymoon to Jersey City, Philadelphia and Baltimore.