White House Historical Association

Catherine Smith

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"Catherine Smith," White House Workers History Project, White House Historical Association, 2026, https://whha.whirlihost.com/Detail/workers/782.
Position
Cook
Years in President's House
circa 1935
Legal Status
Free Person
Gender
Female
Race/Ethnicity
Black or African American
Presidency
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Biography
In 1935, newspapers noted that a woman named Catherine Smith worked as third cook at the White House, under Head Cook Ida M. Allen and Second Cook Elizabeth Moore. In this role, she assisted with food preparation and kitchen sanitation. (1) That year, the kitchens underwent a massive renovation project that modernized the space with “electric appliances includ[ing] a 16 foot long stove, six roasting ovens, warming ovens, eight refrigerators, new dumbwaiters, a meat grinder, all sorts of mixers, five dishwashers, waffle irons, a soup kettle, a 30 gallon ice cream storage box, and a deep fry pan that could hold 5 gallons of fat.” One can imagine the impact such a renovation would have had on Smith’s role. (2) Beyond this information, little is known about her life or career but she does not appear on future staff Christmas lists, suggesting she was no longer on staff by that time. (3)
(1) “Remodel Kitchen of White House, Routine is Upset,” The Springfield News-Leader (Springfield, Missouri), July 29, 1935, pg. 3; “Christmas Kitchen” Muskogee Times-Democrat (Muskogee, OK), December 26, 1935, pg. 3; White House Staff Directory, Undated, White House Office Personnel, 1933-1935; Records of the White House Office of Budget and Accounting, Franklin D. Roosevelt Library, Hyde Park, New York.
(2) Lydia Barker Tederick, “A Look at the White House Kitchens,” White House History 20 (Spring 2007), pg. 16; “Remodel Kitchen of White House, Routine is Upset,” The Springfield News-Leader (Springfield, Missouri), July 29, 1935, pg. 3; Winifred Mallon, “The White House Table,” New York Times, December 29, 1935, https://www.nytimes.com/1935/12/29/archives/the-white-house-table-in-the-new-kitchen-shining-and-electrical.html.
(3) “Colored Regular Employees of the White House Christmas, 1940," Folder: Christmas Subject File, Grace Tully Papers, Franklin D. Roosevelt Library, Hyde Park, New York.
Birthplace
Unclear from Context
Related Workers
Elizabeth Blake
Kitchen, Dining Room, Pantry, and Storeroom, circa 1931 – 1946
Ida M. Allen
Kitchen, Dining Room, Pantry, and Storeroom, 1933 – circa 1940
Elizabeth Moore
Kitchen, Dining Room, Pantry, and Storeroom, 1933 – circa 1946