When Misses Became Ms.’s

Tricia Nixon, daughter of late- U.S. President, Richard M. Nixon, married Harvard Law student Edward Cox in a White House Rose Garden wedding ceremony on June 12, 1971. She has lived a very private life in the suburbs of New York. She serves on the boards of many medical research institutions, as well as the Richard Nixon Foundation at the Nixon Library in California. Tricia Nixon circa 1972- Public domain photo

Never Amiss Again

Etiquette evolves. Styles of life change. And here is one style caught mid-evolution… definitely worth encouraging. The new way to address women: Ms. replacing Mrs. and Miss. Under the old rules, a married woman was addressed: Julie Eisenhower or Mrs. David Eisenhower. 

Under the new convention she is Ms. Julie Eisenhower. And Tricia get similar billing, Miss Tricia Nixon. Although the rule is still not widely used, it is logical and proper, and you might want to start using it in business letters immediately.–The Cosmo Girl’s Guide to the New Etiquette, 1971

Etiquette Enthusiast, Maura J. Graber, is the Site Editor for the Etiquipedia© Etiquette Encyclopedia