Original: First Lady of the United States She is now considered to have been First Lady of the United States from March 4 , 1801 to March 3 , 1809 because her father was a widower , making her the first First Lady not to be a wife of the president .
Simplified: Because her father was a widower , Martha Washington Jefferson Randolph was considered the First Lady of the United States from March 4 , 1801 to March 3 , 1809 .