Who was the first Bachelorette on 'The Bachelorette'?

The first Bachelorette on ABC’s “The Bachelorette” was Trista Rehn. She led the show’s first season after finishing as the runner-up on the inaugural season of “The Bachelor.”

Season one of “The Bachelorette” premiered on January 8, 2003, and featured Rehn choosing among 25 bachelors. The season ended with her accepting a proposal from Ryan Sutter, a firefighter from Colorado. Their televised romance became one of the franchise’s most enduring early success stories.

A common mix-up is to name Meredith Phillips, Jen Schefft, or DeAnna Pappas, all of whom later led seasons of the series. Rehn is distinct because she was the original lead when the gender-reversed “Bachelor” spin-off launched.

Rehn and Sutter married on December 6, 2003, in Santa Monica, and the wedding was broadcast by ABC. Her casting also established an early pattern for the franchise: selecting a popular runner-up from “The Bachelor” as the next show’s central figure.