[27]
George (1836–1838)[28]
Mary (1841–1917), the wife of John E. McElroy, an Albany businessman and insurance executive, and Arthur's official White House hostess during his presidency[29]
The family's frequent moves later spawned accusations that Arthur was not a native-born citizen of the United States. When Arthur was nominated for vice president in 1880, a New York attorney and political opponent, Arthur P. Hinman, initially speculated that Arthur was born in Ireland and did not come to the United States until he was fourteen years old.[30] Had that been true, opponents might have argued that Arthur was ineligible for the vice presidency under the United States Constitution's natural-born-citizen clause.[31][d][32][e][33] When Hinman's original story did not take root, he spread a new rumor that Arthur was born in Canada.[30] This claim, too, failed to gain credence.[33][f][34]

Education[edit]
Arthur spent some of his childhood years living in the New York towns of York, Perry, Greenwich, Lansingburgh, Schenectady, and Hoosick.[35] One of his first teachers said Arthur was a boy "frank and open in manners and genial in disposition."[36] During his time at school, he gained his first political inclinations and supported the Whig Party. 