On December 22, 1968, both progeny of United States presidents, tie the knot in New York City.
Julie Nixon was the daughter of Richard M. Nixon, who was president-elect at the time of the wedding. Her groom was the grandson of Dwight D. Eisenhower, who served as America’s 34th president from 1953 to 1961. Julie and David met at the Republican National Convention in San Francisco, California, in 1956 while his grandfather was campaigning for re-election. They were both eight at the time. At the convention, Julie’s father was nominated as Eisenhower’s running mate. The two were frequently thrown together during Eisenhower’s second term and shared the unusual experience of growing up under the spotlight of national politics. They started dating in 1967, when they were both 19.
Author Tabitha Warters, who studied presidential offspring, noted that Julie and David offered Americans the ideal image of a “wholesome, all-American couple” at a time when the nation was undergoing a counter-cultural revolution and traditional family and relationship roles were being challenged. Warters quoted Nixon as describing his daughter and her fiance as “front-line troops in the battle to reestablish…traditional virtues,” particularly during his 1968 presidential campaign.
Both Julie and David wrote books about their famous and influential relatives.
