Marriage and Family
In January 1811, Calhoun married Floride Bonneau Calhoun, a first cousin once removed. The couple had 10 children over 18 years; three died in infancy: 1. Andrew Pickens Calhoun (1811–1865), 2. Floride Pure Calhoun (1814–1815), 3. Jane Calhoun (1816–1816), 4. Anna Maria Calhoun (1817–1875), 5. Elizabeth Calhoun (1819–1820), 6. Patrick Calhoun (1821–1858), 7. John Caldwell Calhoun, Jr. (1823–1855), 8. Martha Cornelia Calhoun (1824–1857), 9. James Edward Calhoun (1826–1861) and 10. William Lowndes Calhoun (1829–1858). His fourth child, Anna Maria, married Thomas Green Clemson, founder of Clemson University in South Carolina. During her husband's second term as Vice President, Floride Calhoun was a central figure in the Petticoat affair. She was an active Episcopalian and Calhoun often accompanied her to church. However he was a charter member of All Souls Unitarian Church in Washington D.C. in 1821 signing his name right next to John Quincy Adams and remained a member for all his life. He rarely mentioned religion; a Presbyterian in his early life, historians believe he was closest to the informal Unitarianism typified by Thomas Jefferson. In Clyde Wilson's collection of Calhoun's papers, Wilson believes his religion is only known to himself, although he loved to discuss religion. Calhoun's closest quote about religion would be; "Do our best, our duty for our country, and leave the rest to Providence"- in a letter to Anna Maria. In John C. Calhoun: American Portrait, Margaret Coit shows how he was raised Calvinist, went into Unitarianism for a bit, but for most of his life was caught in between the two. Before he died to was touched by the Great Awakening in the South the book states.
| “ | Intensely serious and severe, he could never write a love poem, though he often tried, because every line began with “whereas”. | ” |
| — Historian Merrill Peterson |
Read more about this topic: John C. Calhoun
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