Lucy Petway Holcombe Pickens

 

Episode Intro:

 

Lucy Holcombe Pickens. Southern belle—and the rumored model for Gone with the Wind’s Scarlett O’Hara character, the uncrowned “Queen of the Confederacy,” the Confederate first lady of South Carolina, and according to some, the fabled “Yellow Rose of Texas.” She was a spendthrift—power and money hungry. And if the Confederate States of America is included, the very first woman to be featured on U.S. currency. It’s difficult sorting through the fact and fiction of Lucy Holcombe Pickens’ life, but we’re going to do just that in today’s episode. 

 

Let’s get cracklin’, shall we?

 

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I first heard of Lucy Holcombe Pickens in a very roundabout way. When I was quite young, I was shown Confederate States of America money. I was immediately drawn to a bill that displayed a woman. “Who is that woman?” I asked. But no one seemed to know exactly.

 

Years later in a high school history class a question came up about the first woman to be featured on U.S. currency bills. The answer was that Pocahontas was featured on the back of the $20 bill in 1865, and Martha Washington was featured on a $1 silver certificate in 1886.  I raised my hand and mentioned that although not technically U.S. currency, I had seen a Confederate States of America bill that featured a woman on it, and that although I didn’t know who this woman was, it must have occurred earlier than either one of those. The teacher looked at me, but followed up with me later to confirm that  I was correct—that Lucy Holcombe Pickens, the First Lady of Confederate South Carolina, had been featured on the $1 and $100 bill issued by the Confederate States of America in 1862. 

 

I was curious. Who was this lady? Why was she chosen to be on a Confederate bill? I am ashamed to admit that my first thought was that any person to be featured on a Confederate bill would be such a source of hatred and prejudice, that I didn’t care to know any more about him or her. I realized my own opinion was prejudiced and shortsighted, and resolved to dig deeper into the mystery of who was Lucy Holcombe Pickens. 

 

There were many tales about Lucy Holcombe Pickens, dubbed the uncrowned “Queen of the Confederacy” for her fervent support of the Confederate States of America. Unofficial resources referred to her as the model for Scarlett O’Hara, a calculating Southern Belle in Margaret Mitchell’s Gone with the Wind. Other sources state that she engaged in a loveless marriage after experiencing the heartbreak and death of her true love. She was rumored to be a mistress of Tsar Alexander II of Russia, bearing a child that was his and not her husband’s. As the first lady of South Carolina, it is rumored that she watched troops fire the first shots of the Civil War—insisting that her young daughter be allowed to help General P.G.T. Beauregard light the fuse. After being widowed, she was rumored to be the lover of the handsome former Confederate General Wade Hampton III. 

 

Wow…all of this seems to be more outrageous than the life of the fictional Scarlett O’Hara.

 

What was true and what was fiction about Lucy?

 

I found a…complicated character…in Lucy Holcombe Pickens. 

 

Sources for today’s story are: Many! Refer to our episode show notes for links and specifics, but a main resource is Queen of the Confederacy: The Innocent Deceits of Lucy Holcombe Pickens by Elizabeth Wittenmyer Lewis. Also refer to photos and references on the episode’s Pinterest board located at https://www.pinterest.com/TalesfromtheHearth/lucy-holcombe-pickens/. Links are on our show notes.

 

The One Takeaway I hope you get from this story: Always choose love over power and prestige.

 

Now I hope you enjoy the story about Lucy Petway Holcombe Pickens.

 

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Lucy Petway Holcombe was born on June 11, 1832, in La Grange, Tennessee, the second child of Beverly Holcombe and Eugenia Dorothea Vaughan Hunt Holcombe. Lucy’s paternal grandfather, Philemon Holcombe III, served in Washington’s army and married Lucy Maria Anderson, a relative of Marie Antoinette, the infamous Queen of France. It was noted that the Holcombe family prided themselves on claiming royal blood—and made sure others knew it, too. 

 

A popular tale about Lucy involved her hostess behavior in post-war Edgewood Plantation in 1868. Lucy threw quite the lavish affair, which was interrupted by noisy freedmen and former slaves who wreaked havoc on the grounds and scared all the guests. Lucy, however, called for restraint from her guests, choosing to remain strong and calm until they left of their own volition. “Ah, you were like Marie Antoinette,” a guest complimented. 

 

“They would have not hurt me,” Lucy demurred, “The souffle may be ruined, but we can always eat cake.”  It is unclear whether this event actually occurred, but nevertheless, it is a great story and an excellent line that I will try to reuse somewhere in a future conversation.

 

The Holcombe family settled and lived for many generations in Virginia, but fell on hard times after multiple crop failures. They were forced to relocate to La Grange, Tennessee, and then later to Marshall, Texas. Lucy’s parents’ marriage was unhappy—her mother was forced to work nonstop to keep the plantation running while her husband, Beverly (yes, his name was Beverly!), preferred endless traveling for horse breeding and racing activities. His habits extended to gambling, however, forcing the loss of most of the family’s fortune, two homes in Tennessee, and then compelling their  later move to Marshall, Texas.

 

Lucy was known as a happy, smart, and pretty child, but grew up fairly isolated and prone to bouts  of severe homesickness on top of a bad back that could have been arthritic. Lucy’s mother, Eugenia, wrote in 1846, “Lucy is lively, full of imagination, has a great regard for truth and is sensitive to a fault. Lucy procrastinates…is rather lazy, has no order and is inclined to carelessness…“

 

Ouch. In her mother’s defense, I’ve seen much worse blasted on Facebook!

 

Despite their remote location, Mother Eugenia insisted on obtaining an education for her children. She also taught their slaves to read and write, regardless of the laws forbidding it. She introduced her children to reading classic novels and poetry, and taught them to play the piano until they could enroll in school. The girls first attended a nearby female seminary, and then later, beginning in February 1846, enrolled in a Moravian Seminary for Young Females in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, for three years.

 

The Holcombe family was once again financially strapped, and in January 1850 the family started their relocation to their new Wyalusing Plantation in Marshall, Texas. During their long journey, Lucy was known as quite the impulsive flirt, but she was also adept in engaging everyone’s interest in conversation. She had quite a number of admirers, but took none of them seriously. Lucy preferred politics, stating, “A woman with liberal information, one who comprehends, fully and correctly, the principles and propriety, not only of the intellectual but social world, may exert on society a great and good influence.” Her writings show support and agreement with women’s rights, but during her lifetime, she advocated for subtle means of female influence rather than legal recourse. 

 

Drawn to political discussions, in 1851 Lucy attended debates at the State House. Her presence caused quite the commotion—with so many statesmen insisting on seeing her home safely on the train—that the house session had to be postponed due to lack of members!

 

Lucy was introduced later in 1851 to Ambrosio Jose Gonzalez and General Narciso Lopez. General Lopez was attempting to gather armed support for “liberation” and the U.S. annexation of Cuba to further support a slave economy. Known as “The Filibusters,” his actions were neither supported nor sanctioned by the U.S. government. Nonetheless, Lucy seemed to be quite enchanted and taken with Lopez and this “romanticized” view of “liberation”. 

 

It’s unclear whether Lucy was engaged to him or not, but suitor Colonel William Logan Crittenden joined Lopez to help command the unsolicited (and understaffed) mission. Tragedy would ensue, as both Lopez and Crittenden would be caught and executed with many of their men. Crittenden was allowed to write letters before his execution—one addressed to a mysterious Lucien Henley, whose identity is still unknown to this day. It’s rumored to be to Lucy Holcombe, who shared semblance and initials with the unknown recipient. 

 

Lucy was devastated at the loss. She secluded herself to writing, and the historical fiction novel The Free Flag of Cuba or the Martyrdom of General Narciso Lopez was published by nineteen-year-old Lucy under the pseudonym H.M. Hardimann. 

 

Could this hardship and loss tie in to the theory that Lucy Holcombe was actually “The Yellow Rose of Texas”? The earliest version of the song is attributed to 1853 (so Lucy was in Texas by the time), and the original lyrics are about an African-American who is trying to return to his love, a biracial woman (considered “yellow”). If this is clearly known to be true, then no, Lucy would not be “The Yellow Rose of Texas”. The lyrics of this song have been changed many times and in many ways throughout the years, so someone could have thought this to be Lucy at one time. 

 

Lucy continued with her flirtations, suitors, writing, and involvement in politics over the next few years. Lucy’s family quickly became exasperated with her unmarried state and sought out an extended visit to the “Marriage Mart of the South” at the White Sulphur Springs Hotel in western Virginia in late summer 1857.  

 

Lucy was quite popular in Sulphur Springs and caught the eye of Francis Wilkinson Pickens, a twice widowed, toupeed politician twenty-five years her senior. When Pickens mentioned that he had been asked to serve as a foreign ambassador, Lucy is said to have replied, “If President Buchanan appoints you to an interesting place I might consider your proposal.”

 

Even though much, much older than Lucy, Francis Pickens was said to be an incredibly wealthy owner of three plantations in South Carolina, Alabama, and Mississippi. After her family’s struggles with money, his stability, coupled with his political status, must have been quite the draw for Lucy. This is one parallel of the theory of “Lucy as Scarlett O’Hara” because Scarlett also married for money and prestige rather than love (and it didn’t end up well for her either). 

 

Lucy seemed to prefer one suitor for several years—Fleming Gardner—but he had cooled his relationship with her. Fleming would continue to reappear in Lucy’s life quite regularly until his  death right before Lucy’s. As their relationship cooled, Francis Pickens continued his ardent (and somewhat patronizing and condescending) pen pal relationship with Lucy, and would soon be rewarded for his persistence. Francis was given the ambassadorship of Russia, and with that, Lucy accepted his proposal. They were married at Wyalusing on April 26, 1858. 

 

The newlywed couple (and homesick Lucy) made their way almost immediately to the court of Tsar Alexander II and Tsarina Maria Alexandrovna in St. Petersburg. The couple—especially Lucy— thrived in the lavish court of Alexander II, Lucy ecstatic with all the luxuries afforded her as a rich man’s wife. She spent extravagantly, and later in her life many gossiped that it was Lucy’s spendthrift habits that caused her husband to go into debt—not the effects of the Civil War. 

 

In the Russian foreign court, she was quite the favorite of Alexander II, who conversed and danced often with the pretty Ambassador’s wife. Another popular acquaintance was the wealthy Duke de Osuna of Spain, who also noticed the pretty young wife. Perhaps not surprisingly, Lucy owned a locket with the Duke’s likeness throughout her life. (Hmmm…)

 

Anyway, in Leo Tolstoy’s novel, Anna Karenina, he describes a gathering attended by a pretty Ambassador’s wife with straight black eyebrows. This beautiful woman is commonly believed to be Lucy Holcombe Pickens.  

 

Shortly after her arrival to the court in July, Lucy became pregnant and gave birth to her daughter, Francis Eugenia Olga Neva Pickens on March 14, 1859. It is rumored that Tsar Alexander II was the father of Lucy’s baby instead of Francis, but the timelines are pretty close between possible conception and meeting the Tsar, so this is often considered just malicious gossip. Tsarina Maria Alexandrovna served as godmother to Lucy’s baby daughter, and it was she who added Olga and Neva to the baby’s name. The baby was called “Douschka” or “little darling” by her Russian wet nurse, and the name stuck with her for the rest of her life. Tsar Alexander II would continue to send jewels and luxuries to Lucy and Douschka until his assassination in 1881. In another parallel with “Lucy as Scarlett O’Hara”, Lucy’s beloved slave, Lucinda—”Mamee” in the book—would remain with Lucy and Douschka for the entirety of Lucy’s life. 

 

Lucy yearned for home, and started her return to the states in mid-July 1860. Both Lucy and her husband, Francis, were very concerned about the upcoming presidential election in the states. They feared that if Abraham Lincoln were elected, it would split the country into two. When Lincoln was elected, Francis was initially against secession until returning to South Carolina, where he found overwhelmingly popular and fervent calls for secession. Francis sided with popular opinion, and was elected Governor of South Carolina in December 1860. He announced the passage of the Ordinance of Secession for the state of South Carolina only three days after taking office.  He ordered the U.S. troops stationed in the state—and especially near Charleston Harbor—to leave. 

 

Lucy took well to the role of Governor’s wife, and was admired as a witty conversationalist. It was during this time that she and Mary Boykin Chesnut became acquainted. The diarist Chesnut wrote that Lucy was “intelligent, yet flirtatious, silly, and false.”  She also wrote that, “He [Governor Pickens] will outwit them all yet, with the aid of the lovely Lucy, who is a host in herself.”

 

The local women in Charleston dubbed Lucy as the “Empress” due to her habit of wearing her finery, rich sables, Parisian gowns, and jewels just as she had when in the lavish Russian court. Her extravagance and habit of spending money caused quite the rift with Charleston’s leading ladies at the time. This could also be seen as another parallel with the “Lucy as Scarlett O’Hara” theory.

 

While the governor and friends were celebrating Christmas that year, United States troops took over Fort Sumter in Charleston harbor. The troops were now close enough to fire onto the newly seceded city and block access to the Charleston Harbor. Governor Pickens demanded they relinquish the post. Tensions continued for months until the dawn of April 12, 1861, when Confederate troops fired on the U.S. troops located in Fort Sumter. Most of the town watched the spectacle from Charleston’s battery and other locations near the harbor. Firing continued until the second day, when U.S. troops surrendered. 

 

The story that her young daughter, Douschka, was held by General P.G.T. Beauregard as he loaded cannons for those first shots onto Fort Sumter was completely untrue. Beauregard was not located anywhere near the cannon at dawn, nor were the Pickens family anywhere near the firing at any time. 

 

By mid-April, Confederate troops had made their way to Virginia to fight. Lucy sold many of her jewels and gifts from Tsar Alexander II to support the Confederate troops, and the Holcombe Legion was named in her honor.

 

Lucy and Douschka spent the entirety of 1861 away from Francis, traveling—much to his dismay. He was further angered when he discovered love letters and mementos she’d kept from former suitors, especially those of Fleming Gardner (remember him, the one whose relationship had cooled before Lucy had agreed to marry Francis?). Francis’s control of the South Carolina governorship started slipping as well, but as the Governor’s acceptance was fading—around June of 1862—Lucy was gaining recognition as an engraving of her picture was approved to be minted on the Confederate $1 bill. Her name wasn’t included on the engraving, but it was common knowledge at that time that it was Lucy Holcombe Pickens, the “Queen of the Confederacy.” 

 

It was also this same summer that Lucy met the wounded General Wade Hampton III, and Mary Boykin Chesnut commented on Lucy’s flirtatious conduct with the general.

 

In December 1862, Francis’s governorship came to an end, and Lucy was apprehensive about traveling to the seclusion of Edgewood Plantation located in Edgefield, South Carolina (located near Augusta, GA). In spite of her concerns, she managed to continue to enjoy the benefits of society even in the more remote location, making Edgewood her own and becoming known for her invitations and lavish parties. 

 

In yet another similarity with the idea of “Lucy as Scarlett O’Hara,” Douschka paralleled the story of Scarlett’s daughter, Bonnie Blue Butler, (a bit) who was a fearless horsewoman. Unlike the Gone with the Wind story, however, Douschka owned a pet monkey that was prone to disruptive monkey behaviors. 

 

The civil war ravaged on, filling Lucy with concern and dread for her family and loved ones. It was not going well for the Confederacy, and when General Robert E. Lee surrendered in April 1865, the South lay in tatters and ruin. Lucy was forced to sell many jewels and valuables to keep Edgewood Plantation, but the family lost the two plantations in Alabama and Mississippi.

 

Perhaps ironically, Lucy accepted the position of Vice Regent for South Carolina in the Mount Vernon Ladies Association, with which she would diligently serve for over twenty years to restore George Washington’s estate. Francis sought a pardon from the United States of America, but he would never receive it, as he passed away on January 25, 1869, after many years of sickness. Lucy was a widow at the age of thirty-seven, now alone and responsible for both the Edgewood Plantation and raising her daughter Douschka. She would continue to struggle with finances and the forced sale of her jewels, land, and other items for most of her life.

 

Lucy approached widowhood with physical ailments and ennui, spending time writing letters, novels, and poetry. She lamented the fall of the Confederacy and the loss of how she had lived during the Antebellum South. She started using laudanum regularly for pain management while Douschka attended school at St. Mary’s Hall in Raleigh, North Carolina. 

 

Douschka returned to Edgewood in 1876 and became known as “The Joan of Arc of Carolina” for her leadership in the “Red Shirt” movement. The Red Shirts were a group of Southern Democrat sympathizers who supported Wade Hampton III, the former Confederate General, for election as governor of South Carolina (remember him as maybe Lucy’s rumored lover?). Douschka and other Red Shirts charged on horseback to guard the voting polls, allowing Southern Democrats to successfully vote Wade Hampton in as governor. 

 

There is no substantiation to the rumor that Lucy was the lover of Wade Hampton. 

 

Douchska was married in October of 1881 to Dr. George Cuvier Dugas, with whom she would have three children. In August 1893 Douschka and the children came to visit Edgewood on a very hot day, and Douschka promptly went to bed early. In the morning Douschka was found dead, at the young age of thirty-four. Lucy was devastated, but rallied to take care of the three grandchildren who needed her. 

 

Lucy also found a cause to serve as the President of the Ladies Memorial Association of the Abner Perrin Camp of United Confederate Veterans, whose mission was to honor and erect monuments for fallen Confederate soldiers.  She raised money tirelessly, and traveled to give speeches on behalf of the organization despite her pain and ill health. 

 

Lucy’s body continued to struggle, and on August 8, 1899, Lucy passed away in her sleep at the age of sixty-seven. Her faithful slave-turned-servant Lucinda would follow her mistress in death only three days later. 

 

Now you have it! What are your thoughts on Lucy Holcombe Pickens? 

 

My feelings are fairly mixed. In some ways I still don’t feel that I have a complete picture of Lucy’s life; I’m not sure if she felt trapped or forced into many of her sad decisions. She struggled with pain and “genteel poverty” early in her youth. As a younger person, I want to give her the benefit of the doubt, that perhaps she was young and naive about her support of the Cuban Filibuster movement, and then pressured by her family to marry just anyone. It seemed very sad that she chose to marry the older Francis Pickens because of his political prestige and wealth instead of for love. She was almost 25, though, and would not have been considered young or naive for that time. 

 

As she aged, her opinions and actions regarding slavery seemed contradictory. She is said to have treated her slaves well and loved her slave Lucinda, but she didn’t seem to sympathize with their need to be free and have a choice. She lamented the increased cost of labor after slavery was abolished and the Civil War came to an end. 

 

She also seemed to act a bit tone deaf with her acts of extravagance during and after the Civil War. It was noted that she gave freely to help others, selling most of her jewels and providing lavish parties, but she flaunted that wealth, and it seemed to be in poor taste for the time. 

 

In my research I saw quite of bit of the Scarlett O’Hara parallels that I’ve noted above, but perhaps that could be typical of many Southern women, or a conglomeration of many during that time.  Lucy didn’t seem half as bad as Scarlett! There is no documentation confirming the inspiration for Margaret Mitchell’s Scarlett O’Hara.

 

What are your thoughts on Lucy Holcombe Pickens? I’d love to hear from you about this episode. I hope you’ve enjoyed learning about Lucy Petway Holcombe Pickens. 

 

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