White House Historical Association

James M. Major

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"James M. Major," White House Workers History Project, White House Historical Association, 2026, https://whha.whirlihost.com/Detail/workers/1092.
Position
Chauffeur
Years in President's House
1944 – 1959
Legal Status
Free Person
Gender
Male
Race/Ethnicity
White
Presidency
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Biography
James M. Major, known as J.M. Major, was born on February 18, 1919 in Marietta, Georgia. (1) He joined the U.S. Army in 1937 and was stationed in Maine where he worked at the South Portland Shipyard. (2) In 1944, the Army transferred Major to the White House where he worked as a chauffeur; most employees at the White House Garage during World War II were members of the Armed Forces, like Major. (3) Major continued working as a chauffeur at the White House through 1959, leaving only briefly on deployment during the Korean War. (4)
Major retired from the White House and the Army in 1959, though he remained in the Army Reserves until 1972. (5) He passed away in Maryland on September 16, 1981 and was buried in Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia. (6)
(1) “James M Major” in the U.S., Find a Grave Index, 1600s-Current, accessed via Ancestry.com, https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60525/records/9582908, and “J.M. Major,” Portland Press Herald (Portland, ME), September 29, 1981, pg. 27, https://www.newspapers.com/image/1308904297/?match=1&terms=%22JM%20Major%22%20AND%20%22White%20House%22.
(2) “J.M. Major,” Portland Press Herald (Portland, ME), September 29, 1981, pg. 27.
(3) “J.M. Major,” Portland Press Herald (Portland, ME), September 29, 1981, pg. 27.
(4) Major’s tombstone in Arlington National Cemetery notes his service during the Korean War. See James M Major” in the U.S., Find a Grave Index, 1600s-Current, accessed via Ancestry.com, https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60525/records/9582908. See also Memorandum to President Harry S. Truman re Salary Increases for White House Employees, President’s Secretary Files (Truman Administration), National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, D.C., https://catalog.archives.gov/id/354584155
(5) “J.M. Major,” Portland Press Herald (Portland, ME), September 29, 1981, pg. 27.
(6) “James M Major” in the U.S., Find a Grave Index, 1600s-Current, accessed via Ancestry.com, https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60525/records/9582908, and “J.M. Major,” Portland Press Herald (Portland, ME), September 29, 1981, pg. 27, https://www.newspapers.com/image/1308904297/?match=1&terms=%22JM%20Major%22%20AND%20%22White%20House%22.
Birthplace
Marietta, Georgia, USA