White House Historical Association

John Scott

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"John Scott," White House Workers History Project, White House Historical Association, 2026, https://whha.whirlihost.com/Detail/workers/638.
Position
Stables
Years in President's House
circa 1910
Legal Status
Free Person
Gender
Male
Race/Ethnicity
Black or African American
Presidency
William Howard Taft
Biography
Information about John Scott’s life outside of the White House remains unclear at this time.1 He was employed there during William Howard Taft’s presidency, working with Taft’s famous cow, Pauline Wayne, a Holstein milking cow that grazed on the White House Lawn. In 1910, he earned a salary of $55.00 per month.2 It is likely that he previously worked in the White House Stables and may have cared for Taft’s previous cow, Mooly Wooly. One newspaper described him as “the old colored stableman,” and stated that he had twenty years of experience with cows and horses.3 A 1911 organizational chart of Taft’s White House staff does not include Scott, indicating that he left White House employment before that point.4
  1. The White House Workers History Project relies on the U.S. Census Bureau’s updated guidelines for collecting demographic data related to race and ethnicity published in 2024. Adhering to these categories, this project identifies this person as Black or African American; however, there is documentation or other evidence suggesting that they were multiracial or mixed race. It is important to recognize that historical terms such as “mulatto” and “colored” are problematic, as these reflect the document writer’s views and the historical period more than the individual’s preferences or identity.
  2. Michael L. Bromley,; “Pauline to Lose ‘Child,’” The Washington Post, November 11, 1910, https://www.newspapers.com/image/31566716/?match=1&terms=John Scott.
  3. “Pauline Not Lost,” The Washington Evening Star, November 3, 1910, https://www.newspapers.com/image/330924971/?match=1&terms=John Scott.
  4. 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=0.502,0.345,0.377,0.225,0.
Birthplace
Unclear from Context
Unclear from Context