Inside the ‘storybook’ marriage of Barbara and George HW Bush — who were married longer than any first couple, and still said ‘I love you’ every night Part 1

By Pat Ralph from Business Insider

IMAGE: barbara george hw bush
Former US President George H.W. Bush tosses the coin for the Super Bowl as former first lady Barbara Bush looks on in Houston, Texas on February 5, 2017.REUTERS/Adrees Latif

Former first lady Barbara Bush died on Tuesday at age 92.

She had been battling Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease and congestive heart failure, and was hospitalized several times over the last year.

Bush, who resided in the White House for four years while her husband, former President George H.W. Bush, served as Commander in Chief, had been married to the 41st president of the United States for 73 years.

Described as a true love story, here is an inside look at the longest marriage in US presidential history:

Barbara Pierce and George Bush met at a dance over Christmas vacation in 1942. She was 16 and he was 17, and Barbara claimed that George was the first boy she ever kissed.
AP
Source: Associated Press

After dating for a year and a half, the two became engaged and planned to get married before George went off to serve in World War II as a Navy pilot. He famously named three of his Navy planes after her, and the two shared love letters while he was away.
George H. W. Bush flying a TBM Avenger off the light aircraft carrier USS San Jacinto in 1944. US Navy

On January 6, 1945, the couple married at the First Presbyterian Church in Rye, New York while George was on leave from war. He was 20 and she was 19.
George and Barbara Bush on their wedding day in Rye, New York on January 6, 1945. George Bush Presidential Library and Museum

In the first year of their marriage, they moved around to Michigan, Maryland, and Virginia because of George’s naval base assignments.
George Bush is shown with wife Barbara in 1945. AP
Source: The National First Ladies Library

Over the next 13 years, the couple had six children: George, Robin, Jeb, Neil, Marvin, and Dorothy. Robin died of leukemia at the age of three.
Wikimedia Commons
Source: The National First Ladies Library

After the war was over, George and Barbara moved the family to Texas, where he entered the oil business. The couple has moved over two dozen times during their marriage.
George H.W. Bush got a job at Pennzoil in Houston, Texas. AP
Source: The National First Ladies Library

George was elected as a congressman from Texas in 1966, and Barbara took care of the children as he campaigned. She would sometimes join him on the trail, and would be there every step of the way as he moved up in the political world.

George and Barbara Bush in Houston, Texas on the night he was elected to Congress on November 1, 1966. NARA
Source: The National First Ladies Library

When former President Richard Nixon appointed Bush as Chairman of the RNC during Watergate, Barbara urged her husband not take the job because of the political climate in DC. Nevertheless, he accepted the offer.
George W. Bush, center, poses with his mother and father in Rye, New York, during the summer of 1955. AP
Source: The National First Ladies Library

When the Bush family lived in China while George served as head of the US Liaison Office under President Gerald Ford, the couple would regularly take bike rides and explore their new home.
Chinese dignitaries walk with US President Gerald Ford, center left, in Beijing on Dec. 1, 1975. Accompanying Ford are George Bush, extreme left, Henry Kissinger Secretary of State, fourth from left, Betty Ford, behind President Ford, and Barbara Bush, extreme right. AP

George ran for the presidency in 1980, but fell short in the GOP primary to Ronald Reagan. Bush joined Reagan’s winning ticket as his vice presidential candidate and helped the Republicans take back the White House.
MediaPunch

When George ran for the presidency in 1988, Barbara again campaigned actively for him and became the second candidate’s wife to speak on their behalf at the party convention. George became the 41st president of the United States.
MediaPunch
Source: The National First Ladies Library

After they left the White House in 1993, George and Barbara helped campaign for their children’s quests for public office. The most notable were George W., who served as governor of Texas and the 43rd US president, and Jeb, who served as governor of Florida and ran for president. George W. credits his gubernatorial win to his parents.

Father and sons pose in front of the USS George H.W. Bush aircraft carrier. Lawrence Jackson/AP

For more on this story go to: http://www.businessinsider.com/barbara-george-bush-marriage-secrets-photos-2018-4#barbara-said-she-didnt-fear-death-for-herself-or-my-precious-georgei-know-there-is-a-great-god-and-im-not-worried-23