White House Historical Association

Adell Brown

Ask a Historian Download as PDF
Cite this Page
"Adell Brown," White House Workers History Project, White House Historical Association, 2026, https://whha.whirlihost.com/Detail/workers/1167.
Position
Maid
Years in President's House
1964 – 1984
Legal Status
Free Person
Gender
Female
Race/Ethnicity
Black or African American
Presidencies
Lyndon B. Johnson
Richard M. Nixon
Gerald R. Ford
Jimmy Carter
Ronald Reagan
Biography
Adell Brown (nee Peterson) was born on April 17, 1917, in Magnolia, North Carolina.1 In the 1930s, she moved to Washington, D.C. and began working as a maid.2 In 1964, Brown started her employment at the White House as a maid, keeping both public and private areas tidy.3 She worked at the White House until 1984.4 Adell Brown passed away on November 15, 1999.5
  1. Adell’s maiden name was Peterson; she married Jay Peterson (no relation); they later divorced and in 1963, she married Everett Brown. “Birthdays,” Undated, folder: folder “Birthdays (Residence Staff),” box 29, Betty Ford White House Papers, Gerald R. Ford Library; Adel Peterson in the 1920 United States Federal Census, Year: 1920; Census Place: Taylors Bridge, Sampson, North Carolina; Roll: T625_1322; Page: 12A; Enumeration District: 100, Ancestry.com; Adell Brown, U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007, Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015; Adell Peterson, Washington, District of Columbia, U.S., Marriage Bureau Listings, 1921-1990, DC Public Library; Washington, DC; District of Columbia Marriage Bureau Listing, 1921-2000, Ancestry.com. 
  2. Boyd’s District of Columbia Directory (R. L. Polk and Co., 1938), 999; Adele Peterson in the 1940 United States Federal Census, Year: 1940; Census Place: Washington, District of Columbia, District of Columbia; Roll: m-t0627-00557; Page: 9A; Enumeration District: 1-142, Ancestry.com. 
  3. Adell Brown Letter, February 6, 1987, Heritage Auctions, https://historical.ha.com/itm/political/3d-and-other-display-1896-present-/president-ronald-reagan-s-white-dress-shirt-white-house-maid-adell-brown-served-presidents-lyndon-johnson-through-ronald-reagan/a/625-25545.s?ic16=ViewItem-BrowseTabs-Auction-Archive-ThisAuction-120115. 
  4. Ibid. 
  5. Adell Brown, U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007, Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015.
Birthplace
Magnolia, North Carolina, USA
Unclear from Context