George Cokeley
Cite this Page
"George Cokeley," White House Workers History Project, White House Historical Association, 2026, https://whha.whirlihost.com/Detail/workers/184.
- Position
- Footman
- Years in President's House
- circa 1829
- Legal Status
- Free Person
- Gender
- Male
- Race/Ethnicity
- Unclear from Context
- Presidency
- John Quincy Adams
- Biography
- In February 1829, President John Quincy Adams listed the members of his White House staff in his diary, including George Cokeley, whom Adams identified as a footman.1 He worked alongside fellow footmen Robert Roden and Auguste to deliver messages, assist with the carriages, and serve as general attendants and servants.Cokeley does not appear in any other of Adams’s diary entries. Little else is known about Cokeley at this time. There were several people with similar names living in or near Washington, D.C. around the time of John Quincy Adams’s presidency, but it is unclear if these are the same person as George who worked in the White House.2
- John Quincy Adams Digital Diary, February, 1829, https://www.primarysourcecoop.org/publications/jqa/document/jqadiaries-v36i-1829-02-p129--entry29?navmode=searchresults&doci=18&ss=Kirk|Kirk \
- For example, a George Cokeley served as a private in Waller’s 16th Regiment of Virginia militia during the War of 1812. See “George Cokeley” in the U.S. War of 1812 Service Records, 1812-1815, Ancestry.com, https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/4281/records/316904?tid=&pid=&queryId=9699c59d-5a90-4ec4-a5e5-055f97ef6eb1&_phsrc=KCT1051&_phstart=successSource. A George W. Cokely married a woman named Martha Ann Webster in Washington, D.C. on July 10, 1832. See “George W. Cokely” in the District of Columbia, U.S. Compiled Marriages, 1826-1850, Ancestry.com, https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/5277/records/8112?tid=&pid=&queryId=e9c8809f-81af-4452-8dec-df00dfcbde1a&_phsrc=KCT1062&_phstart=successSource. Lastly, a “George W. Coakley” appears on the 1830 and 1840 Census as a free black man living in Washington, D.C. See “Geo Coakley,” in the 1840 United States Federal Census; Census Place: Washington, District of Columbia; Roll: 35; Page: 24; Family History Library Film: 0006700, Ancestry.com, https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/8057/records/1620467?tid=&pid=&queryId=b5d8b5f2-aeb6-4de1-82bf-7a461f25370c&_phsrc=KCT1080&_phstart=successSource.
- Birthplace
- Unclear from context
- Unclear from context
- Related Workers
- AugusteTransportation, Kitchen, Dining Room, Pantry, and Storeroom, circa 1829
- Robert RodenTransportation, Kitchen, Dining Room, Pantry, and Storeroom, circa 1829