White House Historical Association

Patrick Corbet

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"Patrick Corbet," White House Workers History Project, White House Historical Association, 2026, https://whha.whirlihost.com/Detail/workers/326.
Position
Grounds Laborer
Years in President's House
circa 1855 – 1857
Legal Status
Free Person
Gender
Male
Race/Ethnicity
White
Presidencies
Franklin Pierce
James Buchanan
Biography
Patrick Corbet was born around 1807 in County Clare, Ireland.1 Sometime prior to 1854 he moved to Washington, D.C. That year, he became a naturalized U.S. citizen.2 It is likely that Corbet worked at the White House as a grounds laborer. He appears on the 1855 and 1857 registry of federal government employees, as a laborer for the public grounds in Washington, D.C., a job that entailed maintaining the landscapes of public buildings and parks including the White House, Lafayette Square, and the Capitol. Gray was listed alongside several other laborers who are confirmed to have worked at the White House under head gardener John Watt.3 While working as a grounds laborer, Corbet was a member of the Washington Horticultural Society; White House Head Gardeners John Watt and Alexander McKerichar were also members.4 Corbet passed away on September 13, 1858 in Washington, D.C.5 Little else is known about his life at this time.
  1. His birth information is recorded in his obituary in the Evening Star (Washington, D.C.), September 14, 1858, pg. 3.
  2. “Patrick Corbet” in the U.S., Naturalization Records Indexes, 1794-1995, accessed via Ancestry.com, https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/1192/records/1269157?tid=&pid=&queryId=ea595222-3bfb-4351-ba16-4757e2a45ec4&_phsrc=SaP7&_phstart=successSource.
  3. Register of Officers and Agents, Civil, Military, and Naval, in the Service of the United States, on the Thirtieth September, 1855 (Washington: A.O.P. Nicholson, 1855), 95; Register of Officers and Agents, Civil, Military, and Naval, in the Service of the United States, on the Thirtieth September, 1857 (Washington: A.O.P. Nicholson, 1857), 97.
  4. Evening Star, September 21, 1857, pg. 2.
  5. Evening Star, September 14, 1858, pg. 3.
Birthplace
County Clare, Ireland
Unclear from Context
Related Workers
John Watt
Gardens, Grounds, and Flower Shop, 1853 – 1861
Alexander McKerichar
Gardens, Grounds, and Flower Shop, 1855 – 1875