Catherine Murat
(1803-1867)

Died aged c. 64

Catherine Murat, great-grandniece of George Washington, was born August 17, 1803 near Fredericksburg, Virginia. She came with her parents, three brothers and two sisters to Tallahassee about 1825 and married her second husband, Achille Murat, in 1826. He was the nephew of Napoleon Bonaparte. She inherited the 2,000-acre Murat plantation in Jefferson County in 1847 upon the death of her husband. In 1854 she bought Bellevue, in Leon County, which became her primary residence. During her years at Bellevue, Catherine became involved in the nation’s first successful preservation effort, the Mount Vernon Ladies Association’s work to preserve George Washington’s home. She was appointed Vice Regent for Florida, the title given the central person in each state organizing the association’s work. The state raised $3,791 toward the restoration of Mount Vernon, the largest per capita amount raised by any of the 30 contributing states. During the Civil War, Murat participated in the local "Soldiers Aid Societies," who met as sewing circles to clothe the southern troops. Early in 1866, Napoleon III, who had come to power in France in 1849, granted Murat an annuity from the French government in consideration of her losses during the Civil War. Catherine Murat died August 6, 1867 at Bellevue.

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Catherine Daingerfield Willis Gray Murat (August 17, 1803 – August 6, 1867) was an American socialite and preservationist. In 1858, she was appointed the first vice regent for Florida by the Mount Vernon Ladies' Association. Together with Ellen Call Long, she raised significant funds for the acquisition and restoration of Mount Vernon. Catherine Murat was the great-grandniece of George Washington and was married to the former Prince Achille Murat.

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