Noel Steffani was born in October 1848 in Switzerland and immigrated to the United States in 1860.¹ He began working at the White House as early as 1878, first as a fireman before transitioning within months to a gardener.² In his initial role, Steffani tended the White House furnaces, stoking fires to heat the residence and transporting wood and coal throughout the building. He later worked as a gardener for public grounds until 1901, likely including service on the White House Grounds.³ Steffani died on September 27, 1901, while still in government service and was buried at Mount Olivet Cemetery in Washington, D.C.⁴

“Noel Steffani,” Ancestry.com family tree record, https://www.ancestry.com/family-tree/person/tree/116466937/person/150158479745/facts?_phsrc=fQN431&_phstart=successSource.
“The Working White House: List of Workers,” White House Historical Association, National Archives and Records Administration, https://www.whitehousehistory.org/photos/the-working-white-house-list-of-workers.
Official Register of the United States, vol. 1 (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1881) 384; Official Register of the United States, vol. 1 (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1883) 370; Official Register of the United States, vol. 1 (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1885) 336; Official Register of the United States, vol. 1 (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1887) 353; Official Register of the United States, vol. 1 (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1889) 386; Official Register of the United States, vol. 1 (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1891) 425; Official Register of the United States, vol. 1 (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1893) 451; Official Register of the United States, vol. 1 (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1895) 442; Official Register of the United States, vol. 1 (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1897) 469; Official Register of the United States, vol. 1 (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1901) 545.
Noel Steffani,” obituary, Evening Star (Washington, DC), September 28, 1901, 5; “Noel Steffani,” Ancestry.com family tree record, https://www.ancestry.com/family-tree/person/tree/116466937/person/150158479745/facts?_phsrc=fQN431&_phstart=successSource.

Birthplace

Switzerland

Mount Olivet Cemetery

Related Association Content: https://www.whitehousehistory.org/photos/the-working-white-house-list-of-workers