Patterson McGee
Cite this Page
"Patterson McGee," White House Workers History Project, White House Historical Association, 2026, https://whha.whirlihost.com/Detail/workers/371.
- Position
- Coachman
- Years in President's House
- circa 1864
- Legal Status
- Free Person
- Gender
- Male
- Race/Ethnicity
- White
- Presidency
- Abraham Lincoln
- Biography
- Patterson McGee was born in Ireland in 1827.1 By 1850, he had immigrated to the United States, settling in Baltimore, Maryland, where he worked as a liveryman and coachman.2 Sometime during the presidency of Abraham Lincoln, McGee found employment at the Executive Mansion, although the exact date remains unclear. His tenure ended in February 1864, when newspapers reported his dismissal just one day before an arson attack on the White House Stables that destroyed the structure and killed several horses.3 McGee was initially accused of the crime but was exonerated after providing evidence that he had been attending a theater performance at the time of the fire.4 After leaving the Executive Mansion, McGee returned to Baltimore, where he is listed in city records as a shoemaker.5 He died on December 18, 1871, and was buried at Loudon Park Cemetery in Baltimore, Maryland.6
- Patterson Magee, “Family Tree Person (ID 182688790672),” Ancestry.com accessed November 12, 2025, https://www.ancestry.com/family-tree/person/tree/112745912/person/182688790672/facts?_phsrc=fQN250&_phstart=successSource.
- Patterson McGee, 1850 United States Federal Census, Baltimore Ward 14, Baltimore, Maryland; Ancestry.com, accessed November 12, 2025, https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/8054/images/4199326_00409?pId=15808157; Patterson Magie, 1860 United States Federal Census, Baltimore (City) District 3, Maryland; Ancestry.com, accessed November 12, 2025, https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/7667/images/4231328_00058?pId=53631355.
- “Destructive Fire Last Night,” Evening Star (Washington, DC), February 11, 1864, 3, https://www.newspapers.com/image/143833570/?match=1&terms="Patterson McGee".
- “Liberated,” Washington Chronicle (Washington, DC), February 13, 1864, 2, https://www.newspapers.com/image/1044472506/?match=1&terms="Patterson McGee".
- Patterson McGee, 1870 United States Federal Census, Baltimore Ward 18, Baltimore, Maryland; Ancestry.com, accessed November 12, 2025, https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/7163/images/4269467_00476?pId=23354737.
- Patterson Magee, U.S., Find a Grave® Index, 1600s–Current, Ancestry.com (accessed November 13, 2025), https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60525/records/105315526?tid=112745912&pid=182688790672&ssrc=pt.
- Birthplace
- Ireland
- Loudon Park Cemetery