Martha Parke Custis was the stepdaughter of George Washington who died from an epileptic seizure at the age of 17, fifteen years before he was elected as the first president of the United States. She was the youngest child of Martha Custis, who later became known as Martha Washington, and Daniel Parke Custis, who died one year after she was born. She was called "Patsy" by her family.

Daniel Parke Custis was an American planter and politician who was the first husband of Martha Dandridge. After his death, his widow, Martha Dandridge Custis married George Washington, who later became the first president of the United States.