William Miller was born around 1895 in Washington, D.C.¹ Better known as “Boots” Miller, he began as a chauffeur at the White House during Woodrow Wilson’s presidency after driving prominent Washingtonians, including congressmen, about town.² Miller was primarily assigned to first ladies, but also drove presidents and other first family members to their summer homes and escorted heads of state during important State Visits.³ One newspaper feature noted: “He’s driven them all: Lincolns, Packards, Cadillacs, Chryslers–some of them bullet proofed. And his safety record is perfect.”⁴ Miller was promoted to Superintendent of the White House Garage in 1940 following the death of Francis H. Robinson, who previously held the position.⁵ Miller retired from his role in 1955 due to hearing failure, and earned a “letter of appreciation from President Eisenhower and a watch and a wallet from the boys at the garage’” in recognition of his many years of service.⁶ He passed away on April 11, 1969.⁷

Census data differs on the exact year of Miller’s birth. See William Miller in the 1950 United States Federal Census, National Archives at Washington, DC; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Year: 1950; Census Place: Prince George's, Maryland; Roll: 5864; Page: 14; Enumeration District: 17-226C, Ancestry.com; William Miller in the 1920 United States Federal Census, Year: 1920; Census Place: Washington, Washington, District of Columbia; Roll: T625_208; Page: 1B; Enumeration District: 220, Ancestry.com; William Miller in the 1940 United States Federal Census, Year: 1940; Census Place: Washington, District of Columbia, District of Columbia; Roll: m-t0627-00565; Page: 2B; Enumeration District: 1-353, Ancestry.com.
Upon his retirement in 1955, most newspapers wrote that he had worked on staff for 36 or 37 years, suggesting a 1918/1919 start date. See “White House Chauffeur Retires After 37 Years,” Washington Post, July 3, 1955, pg. E10; “Miller Ends 36-Years Career as a White House Chauffeur,” Evening Star (Washington, D.C.), July 3, 1955, pg. 50, Chronicling America, https://lccn.loc.gov/sn83045462.
“White House Chauffeur Retires After 37 Years,” Washington Post, July 3, 1955, pg. E10 (3) “Miller Ends 36-Years Career as a White House Chauffeur,” Evening Star (Washington, D.C.), July 3, 1955, pg. 50, Chronicling America, https://lccn.loc.gov/sn83045462; Edmund Starling, Starling of the White House: The Story of the Man Whose Secret Service Detail Guarded Five Presidents from Woodrow Wilson to Franklin D. Roosevelt (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1946), 243; Garage Memo, April 2, 1929, Presidential Papers, Subject File, The White House-Garage Correspondence, 1929, Herbert Hoover Presidential Library.
U.S. Congress, House Report, 81st Congress Second Session, Report No. 1425 (University of Michigan, 1950), pg. 7.
Ibid.
“White House Chauffeur Retires After 37 Years,” Washington Post, July 3, 1955, pg. E10.
“William Miller, 75, White House Driver,” Washington Post, April 12, 1969, pg. B8. Burial information was not provided in his obituary.

Birthplace

Washington, D.C., USA

Unclear from Context

Related Worker: Francis H. Robinson
Transportation, 1910 – 1940