Which U.S. First Lady refused protection from the Secret Service?

The United States Secret Service doesn’t just protect the President (or Commander-in-Chief). Today, everyone in the “First Family” is watched over by Secret Service agents.

Protection for the incumbent President’s family members was first enacted during Theodore Roosevelt’s Administration. (Roosevelt had inherited the position while Vice President to William McKinley, who was assassinated in 1901.)

How each First Lady reacts to being trailed by armed guards often depends on both the degree of public exposure they have, and how accustomed they may have previously been with the experience of being guarded.

Obviously, different First Ladies have held differing opinions and feelings about the constant surveillance. Some, including Florence Harding, Mamie Eisenhower, and Grace Coolidge, became friends with the agent assigned to them. Others, like Bess Truman, felt uncomfortable with the constant scrutiny and loss of privacy. Pat Nixon convinced her agents to trail behind her while she took walks disguised in scarves and dark sunglasses.

However, so far, only one First Lady totally refused to accept any kind of Secret Service protection at all: Eleanor Roosevelt. Roosevelt traveled frequently, and found dealing with the presence of an agent irritating. The Secret Service agreed to a compromise, in which Roosevelt was trained to protect herself with a pistol. Despite initially agreeing with the plan, Roosevelt often neglected to bring the weapon on her travels.