White House Historical Association

Elijah Jackson

Ask a Historian Download as PDF
Cite this Page
"Elijah Jackson," White House Workers History Project, White House Historical Association, 2026, https://whha.whirlihost.com/Detail/workers/786.
Position
Pantryman
Years in President's House
circa 1931 – 1944
Legal Status
Free Person
Gender
Male
Race/Ethnicity
Black or African American
Presidencies
Herbert Hoover
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Biography
Elijah Jackson was born in South Carolina on October 10, 1896.1 As a young man, he worked as a farm laborer and served as a Private First Class in the U.S. Army during World War I.2 Starting in 1931, he was listed on First Lady Lou Hoover’s annual White House staff Christmas list. His title during the Hoover years was pantryman, which means that he assisted with kitchen duties like washing and preparing vegetables, arranging food for presentation to guests, and serving other White House workers.3 Jackson listed his place of employment as the White House on a World War II draft registration card, placing him on staff in 1942; he was also listed on a 1944 White House staff roster, although he may have worked there beyond that time.4 Jackson died on August 3, 1985 and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.5
  1. “Jackson, Elijah,” Army Cemeteries Explorer, https://ancexplorer.army.mil/publicwmv/index.html#/arlington-national/search/results/1/CgdKYWNrc29uEgZlbGlqYWg-/.
  2. Ibid; Elijah Jackson in the U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918, Registration State: South Carolina; Registration County: Edgefield County, Ancestry.com.
  3. White House Employees, 1932, Lou Henry Hoover Papers, Subject Files, White House Christmas 1932, Herbert Hoover Presidential Library. Xmas List 1931, Lou Henry Hoover Papers, Subject Files, White House Christmas 1931, Herbert Hoover Presidential Library; Definitions of Titles (Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1965), 514-515.
  4. Elijah Jackson in the U.S., World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942, The National Archives At St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; World War II Draft Cards (Fourth Registration) For the District of Columbia; Record Group Title: Records of the Selective Service System; Record Group Number: 147; Box or Roll Number: 034, Ancestry.com; "Roster of White House Employees, Revised, April 1, 1944,"Folder: Investigative Case Files, 1934-1945, Records of the United States Secret Service, 1933-1945, Franklin D. Roosevelt Library, Hyde Park, New York.
  5. Elijah Jackson in the U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014, Social Security Administration; Washington D.C., USA; Social Security Death Index, Master File, Ancestry.com.
Birthplace
South Carolina, USA
Arlington National Cemetery