White House Historical Association

William Fitzjames

Ask a Historian Download as PDF
Cite this Page
"William Fitzjames," White House Workers History Project, White House Historical Association, 2026, https://whha.whirlihost.com/Detail/workers/140.
Position
Footman
Years in President's House
1802 – 1807
Legal Status
Free Person
Gender
Male
Race/Ethnicity
White
Presidency
Thomas Jefferson
Biography
William Fitzjames served as a footman, hired by White House Steward Etienne Lemaire in May 1802. When he was first hired, Lemaire wrote that “He is a mature and sober man, intelligent and very clean.”1 However, he did not retain Lemaire’s approval. In 1804, Lemaire wrote: “William is always out… he answers rudely when I criticize him.”2 Thomas Jefferson’s memorandum books from 1803 and 1805 show that Fitzjames was paid $14.00 per month, while the memorandum books from 1804 shows he was paid $12.00 per month with a $2.00 gratuity for drinks.3 Fitzjames worked at the White House until 1807. No information is currently known about his time before or after the White House.
  1. “To Thomas Jefferson from Étienne Lemaire, 24 May 1802,” Founders Online, National Archives, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Jefferson/01-37-02-0396. [Original source: The Papers of Thomas Jefferson, vol. 37, 4 March–30 June 1802, ed. Barbara B. Oberg. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2010, p. 492.]; “Memorandum Books, 1802,” Founders Online, National Archives, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Jefferson/02-02-02-0012. [Original source: The Papers of Thomas Jefferson, Second Series, Jefferson’s Memorandum Books, vol. 2, ed. James A Bear, Jr. and Lucia C. Stanton. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1997, pp. 1062–1089.]
  2. “To Thomas Jefferson from Étienne Lemaire, 19 April 1804,” Founders Online, National Archives, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Jefferson/01-43-02-0230. [Original source: The Papers of Thomas Jefferson, vol. 43, 11 March–30 June 1804, ed. James P. McClure. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2017, pp. 265–266.]
  3. “Memorandum Books, 1803,” Founders Online, National Archives, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Jefferson/02-02-02-0013. [Original source: The Papers of Thomas Jefferson, Second Series, Jefferson’s Memorandum Books, vol. 2, ed. James A Bear, Jr. and Lucia C. Stanton. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1997, pp. 1089–1117.]; “Memorandum Books, 1804,” Founders Online, National Archives, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Jefferson/02-02-02-001. [Original source: The Papers of Thomas Jefferson, Second Series, Jefferson’s Memorandum Books, vol. 2, ed. James A Bear, Jr. and Lucia C. Stanton. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1997, pp. 1117–1143.]; “Memorandum Books, 1805,” Founders Online, National Archives, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Jefferson/02-02-02-0015. [Original source: The Papers of Thomas Jefferson, Second Series, Jefferson’s Memorandum Books, vol. 2, ed. James A Bear, Jr. and Lucia C. Stanton. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1997, pp. 1143–1171.]
Birthplace
Unclear from Context
Unclear from Context
Related Workers
Edward Maher
Transportation, 1801, 1802
Étienne Lemaire
Ushers, Stewards, and Doorkeepers, 1801 – 1809
Related Association Content
https://www.whitehousehistory.org/a-well-ordered-household