, by
John Singer Sargent, 1901. Mildred was born on March 2, 1888, in
Cambridge, Massachusetts. Her younger brother was banker
Bernard Shirley Carter, a prominent banker with
Morgan, Harjes & Co. who married Louise Hope Thacher. Her paternal grandparents were Mary Buckner (née Ridgely) Carter and Bernard Carter, a member of the prominent Carter and
Lee families of Virginia and was a descendant of
Henry Lee III, the 9th
Governor of Virginia. Her maternal grandparents were David Pierce Morgan and Carolyn (née Fellowes) Morgan. Her maternal uncle was
William Fellowes Morgan Sr. and among her first cousins was
William Fellowes Morgan Jr. Her father was a diplomat of the United States, serving as the First Secretary to the
American Embassy in London. Later, he served as the
U.S. Minister at
Bucharest from November 14, 1909, until October 24, 1911. He also concurrently served as the
U.S. Minister to Serbia and
Bulgaria. In May 1908, noted American portrait painter
John Singer Sargent painted a portrait of Mildred in London that was described at the time by
The New York Times as "in the painter's best manner and brings out all of the innate sweetness of nature which has endeared Miss Carter to her English as much as to her American friends, all of whom agree that she has the wonderful tact and urbanity of her father." She was presented at the
Court of St James's in 1909. ==Personal life==