White House Historical Association

Raymond S. Werkheiser

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"Raymond S. Werkheiser," White House Workers History Project, White House Historical Association, 2026, https://whha.whirlihost.com/Detail/workers/1013.
Position
Engineer
Years in President's House
circa 1943 – 1944
Legal Status
Free Person
Gender
Male
Race/Ethnicity
White
Presidency
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Biography
Raymond Samuel Werkheiser was born in Easton, Pennsylvania on February 17, 1873. (1) He held a variety of roles throughout his career, including traffic manager at an oil company, conductor at a railroad, and building engineer at a clock and organ manufacturer. Throughout his life, he lived in several U.S. states including Missouri, Illinois, and Texas to carry out this work. (2) In the 1940s, he moved to Washington, D.C., and by 1943, he worked as an engineer at the White House. (3) He was documented in the maintenance department there through 1944, but likely worked there beyond that time. (4) Afterward, he was employed by the State Department as an engineer. Outside of work, Werkheiser was a 32nd degree Freemason and an attendee of the New York Avenue Presbyterian Church near the White House. He passed away on November 24, 1951, and was buried at Cedar Hill Cemetery in Suitland, Maryland. (5)
(1) Raymond Samuel Werkheiser, Pennsylvania and New Jersey, U.S., Church and Town Records, 1669-2013, Historical Society of Pennsylvania; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Historic Pennsylvania Church and Town Records; Reel: 529, Ancestry.com.
(2) “Raymond Werkheiser,” Times Herald (Washington, D.C.), November 27, 1951, pg. 12; Raymond S Werkheiser, 1940 United States Federal Census, Year: 1940; Census Place: Chicago, Cook, Illinois; Roll: m-t0627-01009; Page: 5A; Enumeration District: 103-2809, Ancestry.com; Raymond S Workheiser, 1910 United States Federal Census, Year: 1910; Census Place: Marshall Ward 3, Harrison, Texas; Roll: T624_1562; Page: 8a; Enumeration District: 0049; FHL microfilm: 1375575, Ancestry.com.
(3) "Christmas List for December 25, 1943 for the Men and & Wife & Children Up to 14 Years of Age," 1943, Folder: Christmas Lists; Topical File, 1933-1945, Anna Eleanor Roosevelt Papers, Part 1, 1884-1964, Franklin D. Roosevelt Library, Hyde Park, New York.
(4) "Roster of White House Employees, Revised, April 1, 1944,"Folder: Investigative Case Files, 1934-1945, Records of the United States Secret Service, 1933-1945, Franklin D. Roosevelt Library, Hyde Park, New York; “Raymond Werkheiser,” Times Herald (Washington, D.C.), November 27, 1951, pg. 12.
(5) “Raymond Samuel Werkheiser,” Find a Grave, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/119928008/raymond-samuel-werkheiser; “Raymond Werkheiser,” Times Herald (Washington, D.C.), November 27, 1951, pg. 12.
Birthplace
Easton, Pennsylvania, USA