Texana Thursday: 3 Things You Might Not Know about Barbara Bush

Barbara Bush and granddaughter Marshall Bush visit Millie and her puppies at their birthing box at the White House, March 18, 1989 (George Bush Presidential Library)

The late Barbara Bush, who died this week, will be buried Saturday at the George Bush Presidential Library in College Station. She made her mark in history as the wife of one president (George H.W. Bush, the forty-first president) and mother of another (George W. Bush, the forty-third). Only she and Abagail Adams (wife to John Adams, the second president, and mother to John Quincy Adams, the sixth) have that distinction.

She also supported family literacy, which made a difference in many lives. She has rightfully earned the admiration and respect of millions.

Some things you might not know about Mrs. Bush are:

1. Her father was a successful publishing executive.

Marvin Pierce joined McCall Corporation as an assistant to the president. He worked his way up the corporate ladder and became chairman of the company in 1946. The company produced Redbook and McCall’s magazines. He retired from the company in 1958 and died in 1969.

George and Barbara Bush named their youngest son Marvin Pierce Bush. Marvin Bush lives in Virginia.

2. Millie’s Book was not the first book Barbara Bush wrote.

Millie’s Book, As Dictated to Barbara Bush, was a 1990 children’s book featuring pictures of Millie, the Bushes’ English Springer Spaniel, at the White House. The book was a bestseller, and author proceeds from book sales benefited the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy.

C. Fred’s Story, Slightly Edited by Barbara Bush, was a 1984 children’s book featuring pictures and stories about their dog C. Fred’s experiences at the vice president’s residence.

3. Mrs. Bush named her dogs after family friends.

Millie was named for Mildred Kerr (who went by the nickname Mimi). She was a neighbor of the Bushes in Houston. She died in 2014. C. Fred was named for C. Fred Chambers, who was a long-time oil company executive and political activist. He died in 1989.

Mrs. Bush wasn’t the only one in the family who named her dog after personal friends or acquaintances. George W. Bush and his wife Laura adopted one of Millie’s puppies. They named him Spot Fletcher, after the baseball player Scott Fletcher, who played for the Texas Rangers baseball club. George W. Bush was managing general partner of the ball club at the time. When Fletcher was traded to the Chicago White Sox, the dog became known as Spot “Fetcher” and not “Fletcher.”