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On August 9, 1974, after the resignation of Richard Nixon (who was facing the prospect of likely impeachment and removal from office), Gerald Ford ascended to the position of president of the United States [12] and Betty Ford became the first lady of the United States.
- Who Was Betty Ford?
- Early Life and Education
- Work and First Marriage
- Marriage to Gerald Ford
- First Lady
- Political Will
- Struggle with Addiction and The Betty Ford Center
- Final Years
Betty Ford became the first lady of the United States when her husband, Gerald Ford, assumed the office following President Richard Nixon's resignation. She became well known for her openness as first lady—a trend that continued after the Fords left the White House, when she created the Betty Ford Center for addiction.
Born Elizabeth Anne Bloomer in Chicago, Illinois, on April 8, 1918, Betty Ford was the third child and only daughter of William Bloomer Sr. and Hortense Neahr. Her father worked for the Royal Rubber Company in Grand Rapids, Michigan; her mother was related to a wealthy Grand Rapids furniture manufacturing family. Betty's mother thought social grace...
Hortense Bloomer never completely accepted her daughter's career choice and urged Betty to come home. Finally, after realizing that she would probably not be a premier dancer, Betty returned to Grand Rapids in 1941 to work full-time at Herpolscheimer's department store. After a series of promotions, she became a fashion coordinator for the store. S...
In August 1947, Betty met 34-year-old attorney Gerald Ford, a U.S. Navy lieutenant. Gerald had returned from duty to resume his law practice, and to run for U.S. Congress. The couple dated for a year before Ford proposed in February 1948, and the couple married two weeks before the November election. He picked this date because he was concerned the...
On December 6, 1973, Gerald was appointed Vice President under Richard Nixon, after Vice President Spiro Angew resigned. Then, on August 9, 1974, in an unprecedented move, Nixon resigned from office under pressure from the Watergate scandal. Under United States law, Gerald became the 38th President of the United States and Betty was officially the ...
Weeks after Betty became the first lady, she was diagnosed with malignant breast cancer during a routine exam. Betty underwent a mastectomy, and her openness about her illness raised visibility for a disease that Americans had previously been reluctant to discuss. During her convalescence, she realized the influence and power being the first lady h...
Since the early 1960s, Betty Ford had been taking opioid analgesics for pain from a pinched nerve. Her dependency on these drugs had dissipated during her time in the White House, but after leaving Washington, D.C., her drinking of alcohol increased—as did her use of prescription drugs. In 1978, the Ford family staged an intervention and forced Bet...
In 1987, Betty published a book about her treatment entitled Betty: A Glad Awakening. In 2003, she produced another book,Healing and Hope: Six Women from the Betty Ford Center Share Their Powerful Journeys of Addiction and Recovery. In 1991, she earned the Presidential Medal of Freedom by George H.W. Bush; then received the Congressional Gold Medal...
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Gerald Ford is sworn in as president by Chief Justice Warren Burger in the White House East Room, while Betty Ford looks on. When Nixon resigned on August 9, 1974, Ford automatically assumed the presidency, taking the oath of office in the East Room of the White House.
- Richard Nixon
- Jimmy Carter
Nov 26, 2018 · Betty was thrust into the spotlight when her husband became Vice President in 1973 and then President on August 9, 1974. As First Lady, she became known for her openness and candor. After undergoing a mastectomy in September 1974 she purposefully discussed her breast cancer diagnosis to raise public awareness of screening and treatment options.
Sep 21, 2018 · On August 9, 1974, Betty Bloomer Ford was thrust onto the world stage when her husband, Vice President Gerald R. Ford, suddenly became President of the United States. Betty, a native of...
- 3 min
Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum/NARA. Less than a year later, facing impeachment and possible removal from office, President Nixon resigned on August 9, 1974, and Ford rose to the presidency.
Perhaps the most famous of these is the 1976 American Bicentennial, which culminated in a State Dinner for Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip at the White House on July 7, 1976. 6 She also oversaw a renovation of the President’s Dining Room on the Second Floor of the White House.
