White House Historical Association

John B. Gray

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"John B. Gray," White House Workers History Project, White House Historical Association, 2026, https://whha.whirlihost.com/Detail/workers/328.
Position
Grounds Laborer
Years in President's House
circa 1855 – 1859
Legal Status
Free Person
Gender
Male
Race/Ethnicity
White
Presidencies
Franklin Pierce
James Buchanan
Biography
John B. Gray was born around 1804 in Maryland.1 By 1850, he was living in Washington, D.C.2 It cannot be confirmed, but it is likely that Gray worked at the White House as a grounds laborer. He appears on the 1855, 1857, and 1859 registry of federal government employees, listed as a laborer for the public grounds in Washington, D.C., which included the White House Grounds, Lafayette Park, and the Capitol grounds. Gray was listed with other laborers who are confirmed to have worked at the White House under head gardener John Watt.3 It is unclear at this time if Gray worked as a grounds laborer before or after this tenure. The 1870 and 1880 Census lists him as a gardener in Washington, D.C., but they do not specify where he worked.4 Gray passed away on November 26, 1888 and was buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery in Washington, D.C.5
  1. Various Census records list John B. Gray’s year of birth as approximately 1803, 1804, and 1805.
  2. “John B. Gray” in the 1850 United States Federal Census, accessed via Ancestry.com, https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/8054/records/19362415.
  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; Register of Officers and Agents, Civil, Military, and Naval, in the Service of the United States, on the Thirtieth of September, 1859 (Washington: William A. Harris, 1859), Pg. 98.
  4. “John Grey” in the 1870 United States Federal Census, accessed via Ancestry.com, https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/7163/records/177366; “John B. Gray” in the 1880 United States Federal Census, accessed via Ancestry.com, https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/6742/records/35177866?tid=&pid=&queryId=03d9cd5c-3c65-44a9-a39d-3cb282018aea&_phsrc=zMI8&_phstart=successSource
  5. “John B Gray” in the Washington, District of Columbia, U.S., Death Certificates, 1874-1931, accessed via Ancestry.com, 227553.
Birthplace
Maryland, USA
Mount Olivet Cemetery
Related Worker
John Watt
Gardens, Grounds, and Flower Shop, 1853 – 1861