Varina Anne (Winnie) Davis

First Lady of the Confederate States of America

Biography#

On February 26, 1845, Jefferson Davis married for his second wife, Varina Banks Howell, daughter of William Howell of New Jersey, and his wife Margaret Kempe Howell of Natchez, Mississippi.

William Burr Howell was a son of Governor Richard Howell of New Jersey and his wife Keziah Burr Howell. Margaret Louisa Kempe’s father was Colonel James Kempe, an Irish gentleman who came to America after the Emmett Rebellion.

William Burr Howell (1793–1863)

William Howell was the son of Richard Howell and a soldier during the War of 1812. After the war he removed to Mississippi where he met and married Margaret Kempe. He was the father of Varina Howell Davis, wife of Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederate States.

Letter from Jefferson Davis to William B. Howell#

The following letter from Jefferson Davis to his father-in-law William Howell demonstrates the close relationship between the two men and provides a window into family affairs in the mid-1850s, including the health of Varina and the career prospects of William’s son.