Main Content

Housekeeper Elizabeth Jaffray Makes Some Changes

Copyright © White House Historical Association. All rights reserved under international copyright conventions. No part of this article may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Requests for reprint permissions should be addressed to books@whha.org

Elizabeth Jaffray. Literary Digest 91 (December 11, 1926): 40.

Elizabeth Jaffray. Literary Digest 91 (December 11, 1926): 40.

Library of Congress

Show Me More

Historian William Seale identifies a "strange hierarchy" that had developed among the White House domestic staff by the first decade of the 20th century. At mealtime, the "top-ranking men," black and white, were seated together in a pantry, where they dined upon the President's leftover food. Maids ate in the servants' dining room with the footmen. This group was also racially mixed. Servants farther down the ladder, such as scrubwomen, sat at yet another table.1

Elizabeth Jaffray joined the White House staff in 1909 under the Tafts. Hiring Mrs. Jaffray represented a major change in White House management: substituting a female housekeeper for a male steward. Mrs. Jaffray claims to have "immediately ordered that all the colored servants, regardless of rank or position, should eat at a single table and at a given hour." When objections arose, Mrs. Jaffray threatened the complainers with dismissal.2

The New York Times presented this racial separation of servant tables as a positive move, because "the same consideration is shown for one set of workers as for another. There are still two tables, the white and black being served separately, but the quality of the food is the same for both."3 The Times credited the first lady, not Mrs. Jaffray, with this solution. Although not acceptable today, Mrs. Taft and Mrs. Jaffray’s mandated “separate but equal” eating arrangements were viewed by the mainstream press as representing fair treatment of employees.

Footnotes & Resources

  1. William Seale, The President's House (Washington, The White House Historical Association, 1986), 741–744.
  2. Elizabeth Jaffray, Secrets of the White House (New York: Cosmopolitan Book Corporation, 1927), 19–20.
  3. "All Servants Equal by Mrs. Taft's Rule," New York Times, Oct. 11, 1909: 9.

Read more: Helen Herron Taft, Recollections of Full Years. New York: Dodd, Mead, 1914: 349. Rene Bache, "A Busy Day with the Wife of the President," Washington Post, Dec. 5, 1909, M6.

Share

Related

Related
Next U.S. First Ladies: Making History and Leaving…

You Might Also Like

  • Collection

    The Nixon White House 1969 - 1974

    On January 20, 1969, Richard Nixon was inaugurated as the thirty-seventh president of the United States. During his time in the White House (1969–74), President Nixon sought to unite a divided nation after the social, political, and cultural turbulence of the 1960s. Before becoming president, Nixon served in the U.S. Navy, the U.S. House of Representatives, the U.S. Senate, and as

  • Collection

    Presidential and First Lady Portraits

    Since 1965, the White House Historical Association has been proud to fund the official portraits of our presidents and first ladies, a long-standing tradition of the White House Collection. Recent presidents and first ladies typically select their respective artists before leaving the White House and approve the portraits before their formal presentation to the public and induction into the collection. The

  • Collection

    The Ford White House 1974 - 1977

    Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr., the nation’s only unelected president and vice president, served thirteen terms in Congress before rising to national attention in 1973, when President Richard Nixon nominated him as vice president. Less than a year later, Ford became president, following President Nixon's resignation from office. The Fords made and celebrated history during their time in the White House, fr

  • Collection

    The Decatur House Slave Quarters

    In 1821-1822, Susan Decatur requested the construction of a service wing. The first floor featured a large kitchen, dining room, and laundry; while the second floor contained four rooms designated as living quarters. By 1827, the service wing was being used as an urban slave quarters. Henry Clay brought enslaved individuals to Decatur House, starting a trend that was solidified by

  • Collection

    State Dinners

    A State Dinner honoring a visiting head of government or reigning monarch is one of the grandest and most glamorous of White House affairs. It is part of an official State Visit and provides the president and first lady the opportunity to honor the visiting head of state and his or her spouse. In this collection, explore the history of

  • Collection

    The Johnson White House 1963 - 1969

    On November 22, 1963, about two hours after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, Vice President Lyndon Baines Johnson took the Oath of Office, becoming the thirty-sixth President of the United States. Prior to serving as vice president, Johnson had represented his home state of Texas for more than twenty years in both the House of Representatives and the Senate. As

  • Collection

    The Kennedy Rose Garden

    It is hard to imagine that it was something as casual as a lunch conversation between a newly elected president and an amateur gardener that gave rise to one of our nation's most iconic outdoor spaces. In this collection, Rose Garden designer Rachel Lambert Mellon explains how the grounds were so thoughtfully transformed, while others detail the White House's diverse

  • Collection

    Dining in the Executive Mansion

    A dinner at the White House has always had significance beyond the gastronomical delights. The elegance of the State Dining Room and the intimacy of the Family Dining Room set the stage for the politics and diplomacy that takes place between courses. In this collection, learn how the style of each room has evolved with its purpose, and how the