Truman, Bess Wallace, 1885-1982

Canadian Prime Minister Mackenzie King (left) speaks with Margaret Truman (second from left); while Governor General of Canada Harold Alexander (third from left) and Margaret Diana Alexander, Countess Alexander of Tunis (third from right), pose with President Harry S. Truman (second from right) and First Lady Bess Truman (right). The Trumans are shown here in Ottawa, Canada, attending a formal white-tie dinner in their honor. The caption of the photo album page reads "A good-will mission completed." From an album called "Visit of President Truman to Ottawa, June 10-12, 1947."

Bess Truman (left) speaks with Emma-Stina Prescott (second to left) while Harry S. Truman (second from right) speaks to Kenneth W. Prescott (right) during a reception in honor of the Prescotts at the home of Dr. Philip C. Brooks. From General Correspondence series, folder Pres-Press.

First Lady Bess Truman poses seated in pearls and a flowered dress for her Greta Kempton portrait. A seated pose, dress, and pearls were used in Kempton's resulting portrait, but the First Lady was ultimately painted facing the opposite direction. See photo 2023-1743 for a counterpart study and 68-714 for the final portrait.

Former First Lady Bess Truman (left) holds flowers as she stands on the front porch next to former President Harry S. Truman (right) as he tips his hat to the crowds outside their home at 219 North Delaware in Independence, Missouri. The Trumans returned from Washington, D.C. for the first time after leaving the presidency.

An unidentified police officer (second left) hands flowers to former First Lady Bess Truman (second from right) upon her and former President Harry S. Truman's (right) arrival in Independence, Missouri, after leaving the presidency. Independence Mayor Robert Weatherford (left) stands behind the police officer. A large crowd gathers on Delaware St. as Mr. Truman and Bess Truman return to their home. 

Bess Truman (left) and Margaret Truman (second from left) look at the water while participating in a fishing outing at A.J. Stephens' Basswood Hotel in Platte County, Missouri. The individual on the right is unidentified. Bess Truman's bridge club, The Independence Tuesday Bridge Club, was on a retreat to Basswood. Donor: Stephen Bayliss.

From left to right, Margaret Truman, First Lady Bess Truman, and President Harry S. Truman greet the crowd as they exit the limousine in Marion, Illinois as part of a visit to the Veterans Hospital there. The Trumans were in Illinois during the 1948 presidential campaign.

Former President Harry S. Truman and Former First Lady Bess Truman attend the Jefferson Islands Club Dinner at the Shoreham Hotel in Washington, D.C. The individual to the left of Mr. Truman, and the two men to the right of Bess Truman are unidentified. Donor: Leslie Biffle.

Robert P. Weatherford, Mayor of Independence, Missouri, stands behind the lectern during the Groundbreaking Ceremony of the Truman Library and Museum. Former President Harry S. Truman, former First Lady Bess Truman, Margaret Truman, and Mary Jane Truman stand to Weatherford's left. The future home of the Truman Library is located in Slover Park in Independence, MO. Donor: Dr. Elliot S Berkley.

An unidentified person (left) walks alongside former First Lady Bess Truman (center) and former President Harry S. Truman (right). The Trumans are shown approaching the Gritti Palace Hotel on the Grand Canal in Venice, Italy as part of their European vacation. The individuals in the background are also unidentified. Donor: Clifford Beegle.