White House Historical Association

Richard Burlasque

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"Richard Burlasque," White House Workers History Project, White House Historical Association, 2026, https://whha.whirlihost.com/Detail/workers/634.
Positions
Chauffeur
Footman
Years in President's House
1909 – 1914
Legal Status
Free Person
Gender
Male
Race/Ethnicity
White
Presidencies
William Howard Taft
Woodrow Wilson
Biography
Richard James Burlasque was born on August 20, 1888, in Norfolk, Virginia.1 He married a woman named Ida in 1908 and had a child named Marjorie.2 Burlasque began working in the White House Garage on April 18, 1909.3 Originally, he seems to have worked as a second footman and occasionally drove President William Howard Taft’s housekeeper Elizabeth Jaffray. According to an organizational chart from 1911, Burlasque earned $60.00 per month.4 Around 1911, Burlasque began driving for President Taft’s secretary, Charles D. Hilles.5 He continued working at the White House until 1914.6 In 1915, he became a clerk for the Department of the Interior.7 Burlasque’s later years were plagued with troubles. In the 1920’s during Prohibition, Burlasque worked as a prohibition enforcement officer, or “dry agent.” In 1923, he was indicted on charges of attempting to extort an individual for money in exchange for not arresting him as a bootlegger. Although the case did not go to trial, Burlasque was fired. The following year, he and Ida divorced.8 Despite his role as a dry agent, he also faced struggles with alcohol. In 1930, he was indicted for possession of alcohol and operating an automobile while under the influence. Three years later, he died in a car accident on October 9, 1933. Burlasque was buried at Cedar Hill Cemetery in Prince George’s County, Maryland.9
  1. “Richard James Burlasque in the U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918,” Ancestry, accessed April 16, 2026, https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/6482/records/21719162?tid=&pid=&queryId=3b02b1c2-6cb7-421f-958a-5b1bcda9a7b8&_phsrc=OuO1014&_phstart=successSource; “Driver Found Dead,” The Daily Mail (Hagerstown, Maryland), October 9, 1933, https://www.newspapers.com/image/21074775/?match=1&terms=Richard Burlasque; “Richard J Buralsque in the 1920 United States Federal Census,” Ancestry, accessed April 16, 2026, https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/6061/records/19715671?tid=&pid=&queryId=57e78ba1-7f9b-439e-b40d-2d23af916e50&_phsrc=OuO1008&_phstart=successSource.
  2. “Richard J Buralsque in the 1920 United States Federal Census,” Ancestry, accessed April 16, 2026, https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/6061/records/19715671?tid=&pid=&queryId=57e78ba1-7f9b-439e-b40d-2d23af916e50&_phsrc=OuO1008&_phstart=successSource; “Richard J Burlasque in the Virginia, U.S., Divorce Records, 1918-2014,” https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/9280/records/57059?tid=&pid=&queryId=43cf8f54-d106-4252-94ad-67f63df3a5a2&_phsrc=OuO1001&_phstart=successSource.
  3. “Is Minus a Carriage,” The Washington Evening Star, March 13, 1913, https://www.loc.gov/resource/sn83045462/1913-03-04/ed-1/?sp=14&q=Is+Minus+a+Garage&r=0.432,0.017,0.279,0.167,0.
  4. William L. Bromley, William Howard Taft and the First Motoring Presidency, (Jefferson, North Carolina, 2003), 381; William H. Taft, William H. Taft Papers: Series 6: Executive Office Correspondence (Presidential Series No. 2), 1909-1913; 500K-502A, Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/resource/mss42234.mss42234-396_0020_1132/?sp=1053&r=0.22,0.264,1.185,0.429,0.
  5. “White House is Without Garage,” Richmond Times Dispatch, March 5, 1913, https://www.newspapers.com/image/827337633/?match=1&terms="Richard Burlasque".
  6. “Big Demand for Maryland Tags,” The Washington Times, January 18, 1814, https://www.newspapers.com/image/84462118/?match=1&terms="Richard Burlasque".
  7. “James Burlasque in the U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995,” Ancestry, accessed April 16, 2026, https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2469/records/1022899200?tid=&pid=&queryId=0fd88e77-098b-42af-b633-3fe362d09e65&_phsrc=OuO1010&_phstart=successSource;
  8. “Richard James Burlasque in the U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918,” Ancestry, accessed April 16, 2026, https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/6482/records/21719162?tid=&pid=&queryId=3b02b1c2-6cb7-421f-958a-5b1bcda9a7b8&_phsrc=OuO1014&_phstart=successSource;“Dry Agents Escape Trial,” The Washington Post, May 23, 1923; “Richard J Burlasque in the Virginia, U.S., Divorce Records, 1918-2014,” Ancestry, https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/9280/records/57059?tid=&pid=&queryId=43cf8f54-d106-4252-94ad-67f63df3a5a2&_phsrc=OuO1001&_phstart=successSource.
  9. A local newspaper reported a half empty bottle of whiskey was found in the front seat. “48 Are Indicted By Arlington Jury,” The Washington Evening Star, October 21, 1930; “Driver Found Dead,” The Daily Mail, (Hagerstown, Maryland), October 9, 1933, https://www.newspapers.com/image/21074775/?match=1&terms=Richard Burlasque; “Crash Is Fatal To Former Aid At White House,” The Washington Post, October 8, 1033, https://www-proquest-com.mutex.gmu.edu/hnpwashingtonpost/docview/150367459/F9AD6EA016CD4A71PQ/2?accountid=8285&sourcetype=Newspapers.
Birthplace
Norfolk, Virginia, USA
Cedar Hill Cemetery