Washington D.C. Beauty, Therese Chalfant, was not only a Stunning Capital Queen, in the late 1850’s, but was known for her humility and graciousness, in the sometimes petty political environment of the nation’s seat of government. There was never a doubt in any Washington resident’s mind, who the most charming and gorgeous woman was, that graced the salons and parlors of upper society prior to the Civil War. She was described by all as, “The most beautiful woman in Washington.”
Therese Chalfant, a native of Ohio, was born on December 18, 1832 and raised near Felicity, Ohio. Therese married George Ellis Pugh, on November 22, 1855, in Cincinnati, Ohio. George was a veteran of the Mexican War, a successful lawyer and politician, elected to the United States Senate, serving from 1855-1861. Therese Chalfant Pugh and her husband had three children, one dying as an infant and two living full and prosperous lives. The newly weds moved to Washington D.C. and immediately joined the social whirl and excitement of the nation’s capital.
The Pugh’s major claim to fame, while in Washington, was beyond a doubt, the effect that Therese’s charms and beauty had on the male population. One of Therese’s close friends, Virginia Clay Clopton, relates in her 1905 book, A Belle of the Fifties, the effect that Therese had on one admirer,
“I was not present when the Austrian Minister, the chevalier Hulseman, paid his great compliment (now a classic in the capital) to Miss Chalfant ; but it was soon thereafter repeated to me. It was at a ball at which pretty women thronged. As the Minister’s gaze rested upon Miss Chalfant, his eyes expanded with admiration. Approaching, he knelt suddenly before her, exclaiming, Madame ! I have from my Empress a piece of precious lace (and he fumbled, but, alas ! vainly, in his pockets as he spoke) which her Majesty has commanded me to present to the most beautiful woman in Washington. You—you are more, the most beautiful in the world ! I have not with me the lace, but I will send it if you will permit me! And he kept his word.
Virginia Clay Clopton continues her description of Mrs. Therese Chalfant Pugh,
We were glad to welcome to our “mess” so lovely and famous a bride. Mrs. Pugh’s beauty was of so exquisite a type, the bodily so permeated by the spiritual, that she shone preeminent wherever she appeared, and this wholly independent of showy attire. Though always presenting an appearance of elegance, Mrs. Pugh’s gowns were invariably of the simplest. Our mess soon became aware that our beautiful favourite was primarily a lovely woman, and no mere gay butterfly. Her nature was grave rather than vivacious, the maternal in her being exceedingly strong.”
Therese Chalfant Pugh, died young, at only 34 years old, on February 13, 1867 and was laid to rest at the Spring Grove Cemetery in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Washington D.C. Beauty, Therese Chalfant Pugh, was not only a Stunning Capital Queen, but an example of the shining and enchanting aspects of the virtuous soul, that out shines all exterior trappings and shallow first impressions.
Bummer
