Theodosia Burr Alston

About

Socialite best known for being the daughter of Aaron Burr, the third Vice President of the United States, and for her mysterious disappearance at sea after boarding the schooner Patriot in December 1812.

Before Fame

She was born into one of the most politically influential families in early America. She was highly educated from a young age and had a close relationship with her father. She became a key hostess for her father's social and political gatherings. Her father was charged with treason in 1807 but remained one of his strongest supporters.

Trivia

She was the first woman in the United States to be given an education equivalent to that of a man in her time. She was fluent in several languages by her teenage years. Her disappearance at sea remains one of American history's biggest mysteries.

Family Life

She was born and raised in Albany, New York. She was the only surviving child of her father Aaron Burr and her mother Theodosia Bartow Prevost Burr. Her mother died when she was only 11 years old. She married Joseph Alston in 1801. She had one son who died from malaria when he was 10 years old. She was never seen again after leaving by ship in December 1812 and is suspected to have died sometime between December 1812 and early 1813.

Associated With

Her father killed Alexander Hamilton in a duel. She interacted with James Madison and Dolley Madison.