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White House census record, 1830. The U.S. Census in 1830 recorded 14 enslaved individuals living in the White House while Andrew Jackson was president. Six enslaved workers were male (two under 10 years; two between 10 and 24; and two between 24 and 36). Eight enslaved workers were female (three under 10; four between 10 and 24; and one between 24 and 36).
National Archives and Records Administration
Paul Jennings was born into slavery on James Madison’s estate at Montpelier in 1799 and later served as the president’s "body servant" until Madison died in 1836. Pollard Webb, an insurance and real estate agent, purchased Jennings from Dolley Madison in September 1846, and sold him to U.S. Senator Daniel Webster for $120 six months later. This 1847 signed agreement between Paul Jennings and Daniel Webster spells out the ways in which Jennings will repay Daniel Webster for having purchased Jennings’ freedom from Pollard Webb.
Moorland-Spingarn Research Center, Howard University
Book cover of Colored Man’s Reminiscences of James Madison by Paul Jennings, 1865. It is the first documented memoir by a White House worker and remained obscure for many years because so few copies were printed.
Moorland-Spingarn Research Center, Howard University
Jerry Smith, North Portico, c. 1889. Smith started working at the White House during the Ulysses S. Grant administration in the late 1860s, and served as butler, cook, doorman, and footman until his retirement some 35 years later. He was often seen with his signature feather duster. Shortly before dying at age 69 in 1904, Smith was visited at his home by President Theodore Roosevelt.
Library of Congress
White House doormen, 1889-93. In the 1890s, when this photograph was taken at the North Portico, White House doorkeepers were responsible not only for meeting the arrival of carts and carriages, but also for directing maids and footmen. Many doorkeepers were former police officers.
Library of Congress
Setting the table in the Family Dining Room, 1890s. A housemaid, her dress covered with a crisp white apron, sets the table in the White House’s private dining room. The high chair was for Esther Cleveland, born at the White House in 1893.
Harper's New Monthly Magazine
List of workers in the greenhouse and grounds, 1888. Among those working as laborers and gardeners on the White House grounds in 1888 were employees born in France, Germany, Ireland, Scotland, and Switzerland, as well as Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Washington, D.C.
National Archives and Records Administration
Lamplighter job description, 1888. Working on average five hours a day, the White House lamplighter was responsible not only for illuminating and extinguishing the lamps, but also for lighting fires, removing ashes, cleaning the basement, and polishing the ranges. Electric lights were not installed in the White House until 1891.
National Archives and Records AdministrationAbout this Gallery
The occupational culture and management of the 19th-century White House reflected the social climate and ethnic composition of Washington, D.C. The White House staff, like that of many elite Washington households, was racially and ethnically mixed. The Executive Mansion was run according to accepted practices for operating a prominent mid-Atlantic household. Washington’s social elite had a high standard for entertainment and household service, and expected the same when attending White House teas, dances, and dinners.
For more than one hundred years, White House Social Secretaries have demonstrated a profound knowledge of protocol and society in Washington, D.C. The position had its beginnings in the Theodore Roosevelt administration when First Lady Edith Roosevelt hired an executive clerk. From the intricacies of ceremony planning to routine office work, the social secretary must possess unfailing tact in
For more than two centuries, the White House has been the home of American presidents. A powerful symbol of the nation, it is a uniquely private and public space. Since John and Abigail Adams first moved into the “President’s House” in November 1800, hundreds of individuals have worked behind the scenes to help the White House fulfill its roles as a seat
The White House Military Social Aides have played an important role in many different White House events and functions. They have assisted the President with diplomatic protocol at State events, at annual meetings with the leaders of Congress and the Federal Judiciary, and at other significant social events. Military Social Aides play the role of assistant hosts at the White
While the presidency is often in the eye of the public, those who ensure operations at the White House run smoothly on a day-to-day basis often carry out their work behind the scenes. Furthermore, some of the president's most intimate relationships play out behind the walls of the Executive Mansion. In this collection, pull back the curtain on some of
