Peggy Eaton

Peggy Eaton was the center of a dirty juicy scandal. She was the mistress of John Eaton. John Eaton then married her. The other ladies did nothing but talk down and talk dirt about her. It eventually caused her to withdraw herself from the social scene. She couldn't stand being the center of attention for being scandalous. This split the Jackson administration. I believe it relates a lot to society today. People love nothing more than a juicy scandal. Famous people and even "average" people love to have a reason to gossip and curve the attention away from themselves and what they may have to hide. It's actually amazing that things like these haven't changed much.

The Peggy Eaton Affair in Today's Society

It is common to see scandalous affairs plastered all over the media and in the tabloids in today's society. Either a celebrity has cheated on their spouse or someone has divorced because of lies and infidelity. Everywhere we look we are confronted with gossip of who slept with who or what this person said about so-and-so. It has become a natural part of our society and no one can avoid or deflect it from being thrown in their face on a daily basis. Peggy Eaton represents many women that have been introduced to the political scene due to quiet affairs and cover-ups. The wives of the Jackson's cabinet members are like the media outlets that scream scandal at the first whisper of an affair, not caring if it is true or not. They belittle and ridicule whoever they please and make the subject feel even worse about what is going on in their personal lives. Some put on a brave face and just ride out the gossip wave, but others succumb to the rumors and simply become outcasts of society much like Peggy Eaton did. She couldn't take the cold chill from the other wives so she bowed out and did not remain on the political social scene. You would think that society would start to learn from history repeating itself, but most simply don't care and get caught up in the game we know as scandal.

Real Housewives of the Cabinet

I found this political cartoon and couldn't help but share. It speaks volumes of how our past relates to our present. The wives of the cabinet belittled and ridiculed Peggy Eaton and as we can see in this meme she is being treated as a child by the other women.

Welcome to the Peggy Eaton Affair! (1829-1831)

Margaret O'Neale is commonly known as Peggy Eaton. She was the daughter of an Irish tavern owner. While being raised in a boarding house that was populated with politicians, she became a wise observer of politics. In 1816, Peggy married her first husband. His name was John B. Timberlake. He was a member of the United States Navy. The Timberlake couple were friends with Senator John Henry Eaton. At the age of 23 years old Peggy found herself a widow. Her first husband died of an unexpected death while out on duty with the U.S Navy. There were many rumors that he committed suicide due to affairs between Peggy and Eaton. These rumors were denied. Not long after her husband died she remarried to John Henry Eaton. In 1829, just three months after they were pronounced husband and wife, he was selected as President Jackson's secretary of war. Jackson was empathetic towards their situation due to the malicious gossip about his own wife. Jackson's wife had not finalized her divorce in her previous marriage before getting married to President Jackson. It was now Peggy Eaton's time to be the spotlight of the cruel gossip. The vice president's wife condemned Peggy Eaton for her inferior morals. She deliberately snubbed her, and the rest of the cabinet wives followed. Jackson was recommended not to make Eaton his secretary of war because of Peggy's reputation. He was outraged by the suggestion and blamed the ladies of Washington for the drama and uproar in the cabinet. This scandal, which was also named the Petticoat Affair, followed Jackson through his first term. Jackson's opponents used this well-known event to attack the president's moral judgement. This was politically damaging to Jackson's reputation and severely altered his opportunity to be re-elected in the upcoming president election. In response to the negativity in the cabinet, in 1831 Eaton and Van Buren resigned in order to give Jackson the chance to protect his presidency from further scandal.