Bertha Palmer

Bertha Palmer (May 22, 1849 – May 5, 1918) was an American businesswoman, socialite, and philanthropist.

Biography

Born Bertha Matilde Honoré in Louisville, Kentucky, her father was businessman Henry Hamilton Honoré. Bertha, known within the family as "Cissie," studied in her home town and achieved a reputation as a skilled musician, proficient linguist, brilliant writer, able politician, and fine administrator.

Marriage

Bertha Honoré married the Chicago millionaire Potter Palmer in 1870. She was twenty-one and he was forty-four. Palmer was a Quaker merchant who had come to Chicago after failing twice in business. In Chicago he learned to please his customers, many of whom were women. He made customer service a priority and carried everything from dry goods to the latest French fashions for ladies. Palmer sold his vast store to a consortium and it would eventually become Marshall Field's. Palmer then opened a luxury hotel, Palmer House and invested in real estate, eventually owning a vast portfolio of properties. Soon after their marriage, the Chicago Fire wiped out the Palmer House and most of their holdings, and Bertha Palmer had to rush off to wire the east so that Palmer could re-establish credit, borrow money and rebuild his holdings. Bertha Palmer was unusually poised for one so young, and together the Palmers re-established their fortune and despite her age, she quickly rose to the top of Chicago society. "She was beautiful, dashing, quick, and smart; and more than that, she was sure of herself," wrote historian Ernest Poole.