{{short description|First Lady of Alabama}} {{Infobox officeholder | name = Cornelia Wallace | image = | caption = Cornelia Wallace's official state portrait. | order = First Lady of Alabama | governor = George Wallace | term_label = In role | term_start = January 18, 1971 | term_end = January 4, 1978 | predecessor = Martha Farmer Brewer | successor = Bobbie Mooney James | birth_name = Cornelia Ellis | birth_place = Elba, Alabama, U.S | birth_date = {{Birth date |1939|1|28}} | party = Democratic | death_date = {{death date and age|2009|1|8|1939|1|28}} | death_place = Sebring, Florida, U.S | alma_mater = Huntingdon College<br>Rollins College | spouse = {{plainlist| * {{Marriage|John Snively III|1962|1970|end=divorced}} * {{Marriage|George Wallace|1971|1978|end=divorced}} }} | children = 2 }} '''Cornelia Wallace''' (née '''Ellis''', formerly '''Snively'''; January 28, 1939{{spaced ndash}}January 8, 2009) was an American civic leader who served as the First Lady of Alabama from 1971–1978 as the second wife of Democratic Governor George C. Wallace.
Wallace attracted national attention on May 15, 1972, when, at the age of 33 she threw herself over her husband when he was shot four times by Arthur Bremer during an assassination attempt at a shopping center in Laurel, Maryland.<ref>[https://archive.today/20090208144402/http://www.kvoa.com/Global/story.asp?S=9649348&nav=HMO6HMaY Former Alabama first lady Cornelia Wallace dies] ''KVOA''</ref> At the time, Wallace was seeking support in his bid for his party's presidential nomination.
== Biography == Wallace was born in Elba in southeastern Alabama to Charles G. Ellis, a civil engineer who died in 1960, and "Big Ruby” Folsom Ellis, former Governor James E. “Big Jim” Folsom's sister. Folsom was a widower and in 1947 invited his sister to be First Lady; Cornelia joined her at eight years of age.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title = SOUTHERN LIGHTS: Courageous Cornelia had, then lost, it all|url = http://www.tuscaloosanews.com/article/20090118/NEWS/901172910?p=2&tc=pg|website = TuscaloosaNews.com|accessdate = 2015-12-21}}</ref>
Wallace attended Methodist Huntingdon College and Rollins College in Winter Park, Florida, and studied voice and piano. She sang and played guitar and toured Australia and Hawaii with Country music singer Roy Acuff.<ref name="ledger" /> Wallace wrote and recorded two songs for M-G-M records: "It's No Summer Love" and "Baby with the Barefoot Feet".<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,903515,00.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080131191028/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,903515,00.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 31, 2008|title=Cornelia: Determined to 'Make Do'|magazine=Time |accessdate=February 5, 2009 | date=May 29, 1972}}</ref> Following her father's death, she and her mother, who was not wealthy but had many wealthy and influential contacts, often house sat for wealthy friends in Washington, D.C., and other cities in order to live beyond their limited means. She married John Snively, whose family owned the tourist attraction Cypress Gardens near Winter Haven, Florida. The couple had two sons, James and Joshua, but divorced in 1969.<ref name=":0" /><ref name="nt">{{cite news |url= https://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/10/us/10wallace.html |title=Cornelia Wallace, 69, First Lady of Alabama, Dies|work=The New York Times |date=January 9, 2009 |location=New York |issn=0362-4331 |accessdate=July 5, 2011}}</ref>
Cornelia Wallace was a niece of George Wallace's intraparty rival, former Governor Jim Folsom, whom Wallace had defeated in the 1962 Democratic primary. She married Wallace on January 4, 1971, shortly before he was inaugurated for the second of his four nonconsecutive terms as governor,<ref name=nt/> and two and a half years following the death of his first wife, former Governor Lurleen Burns Wallace.<ref name=ledger>{{cite news|title=The Life of Wallace: Former Alabama First Lady talks about movie, ex-husband, and adventures|first=Bill|last=Blair|newspaper=The Ledger|location=Lakeland, Florida|publisher=Lakeland Legend Publishing Company|date= August 24, 1997|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=6fAvAAAAIBAJ&sjid=w_wDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6736,2503135}}</ref>
== Death and legacy == She was portrayed by Angelina Jolie in the TV film ''George Wallace''. The Associated Press stated that the film's version of Cornelia Wallace was depicted as "a shallow sex kitten" and therefore Cornelia Wallace had criticism towards the portrayal.<ref name=APCorneliaDied>{{cite web|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna28581908|title=Widow of late Gov. George Wallace dies at 69|publisher=NBC News|date=2009-01-09|accessdate=2022-06-08}} - [https://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/10/us/10wallace.html Alternate version ("Cornelia Wallace, 69, First Lady of Alabama, Dies")] at ''The New York Times'', January 9, 2009. [https://www.thehour.com/norwalk/article/Cornelia-Wallace-69-second-wife-of-Alabama-Gov-8264106.php Version ("Cornelia Wallace, 69, second wife of Alabama Gov. George Wallace") at] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230213104651/https://www.thehour.com/norwalk/article/Cornelia-Wallace-69-second-wife-of-Alabama-Gov-8264106.php |date=2023-02-13 }} ''The Hour'' (Norwalk, Connecticut), January 8, 2009. [https://www.dispatch.com/story/news/2009/01/09/former-alabama-first-lady-cornelia/24166009007/ Alternate ("Former Alabama first lady Cornelia Wallace dies") at] ''The Columbus Dispatch'', January 8, 2009.</ref>
Wallace died of cancer in Sebring, Florida, on January 8, 2009.<ref name="nt" />
Turnham also recalled that as first lady, Mrs. Wallace urged Alabamians to plant vegetable gardens to be more self-reliant.<ref name=ap>{{cite news|url=http://www.cleveland.com/obituary/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/news-1/1231597816239670.xml&coll=2|title=Cornelia Wallace, 69, former Ala. first lady|newspaper=Cleveland Plain Dealer|location=Cleveland, Ohio|first=Phillip|last=Rawls|date=January 10, 2009|accessdate=July 5, 2011|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20121014185659/http://www.cleveland.com/obituary/plaindealer/index.ssf?%2Fbase%2Fnews-1%2F1231597816239670.xml&coll=2|archivedate=October 14, 2012}}</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}} {{George Wallace}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Wallace, Cornelia}} Category:1939 births Category:2009 deaths Category:Alabama Democrats Category:Deaths from cancer in Florida Category:People from Sebring, Florida Category:Huntingdon College alumni Category:Rollins College alumni Category:First ladies and gentlemen of Alabama Category:Women in Alabama politics Category:People from Elba, Alabama Category:George Wallace Category:20th-century American women politicians Category:Folsom family (Alabama) Cornelia Category:20th-century Alabama politicians