Eddie G. Thomas
Cite this Page
"Eddie G. Thomas," White House Workers History Project, White House Historical Association, 2026, https://whha.whirlihost.com/Detail/workers/839.
- Positions
- Engineer
- Chauffeur
- Gardener
- Years in President's House
- 1931 – 1964
- Legal Status
- Free Person
- Gender
- Male
- Race/Ethnicity
- White
- Biography
- Eddie Glassel Thomas was born on July 26, 1903, in Caroline County, Virginia. (1) He grew up working on his grandfather’s farm in Port Royal, Virginia, before moving to Washington, D.C. (2) In 1931, during Herbert Hoover’s presidency, Thomas joined the White House staff. Records suggest that over his thirty-three year tenure on staff he performed a variety of jobs for different departments including working in the greenhouses and bouquet room, driving trucks, and working for the engineering department. (3)
By the time he retired from the Johnson White House in 1964, he was chief engineer, and one of his maintenance duties was tending to the White House swimming pool. (4) Eddie Thomas spent his free time honing the green thumb he first acquired in the White House greenhouses. (5) He died on June 25, 1985, and was buried at National Memorial Park in Fairfax County, Virginia. (6) - (1) Eddie Glassel Thomas in the U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947, National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; WWII Draft Registration Cards For Virginia, 10/16/1940-03/31/1947; Record Group: Records of the Selective Service System, 147; Box: 728, Ancestry.com.
(2) Eddie G Thomas in the 1920 United States Federal Census, Year: 1920; Census Place: Port Royal, Caroline, Virginia; Roll: T625_1884; Page: 5A; Enumeration District: 25, Ancestry.com.
(3) “E. G. Thomas’ Work History,” Ancestry, https://www.ancestry.com/mediaui-viewer/collection/1030/tree/159675936/media/a3c7febb-b30d-44dc-99ec-eee59f6001ce?galleryindex=60&sort=-created; Eileen Remington, “Alexandria Holds Host of Memories From White House,” Unidentified clipping, Undated, Ancestry, https://www.ancestry.com/mediaui-viewer/collection/1030/tree/1902256/person/340178186716/media/239d1cb7-f240-4f83-ae0f-599ecf51e624?galleryindex=3&sort=-created; 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; Hill’s Alexandria CIty Directory Vol. XXXVII (Hill Directory Co., 1940), pg. 396; "White Regular Employees of the White House Christmas, 1940," Folder: Christmas Subject File, Grace Tully Papers, Franklin D. Roosevelt Library, Hyde Park, New York; Eddie G Thomas in the 1940 United States Federal Census, Year: 1940; Census Place: Alexandria, Alexandria City, Virginia; Roll: m-t0627-04304; Page: 7B; Enumeration District: 101-23, Ancestry.com. Eileen Remington, “Alexandria Holds Host of Memories From White House,” Unidentified clipping, Undated, Ancestry, https://www.ancestry.com/mediaui-viewer/collection/1030/tree/1902256/person/340178186716/media/239d1cb7-f240-4f83-ae0f-599ecf51e624?galleryindex=3&sort=-created; Eddie Glassel Thomas in the U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947, National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; Wwii Draft Registration Cards For Virginia, 10/16/1940-03/31/1947; Record Group: Records of the Selective Service System, 147; Box: 728, 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; Eddie G Thomas 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: Alexandria, Alexandria, Virginia; Roll: 846; Page: 18; Enumeration District: 101-80, Ancestry.com.
(4) “E. G. Thomas’ Work History,” Ancestry, https://www.ancestry.com/mediaui-viewer/collection/1030/tree/159675936/media/a3c7febb-b30d-44dc-99ec-eee59f6001ce?galleryindex=60&sort=-created; Eileen Remington, “Alexandria Holds Host of Memories From White House,” Unidentified clipping, Undated, Ancestry, https://www.ancestry.com/mediaui-viewer/collection/1030/tree/1902256/person/340178186716/media/239d1cb7-f240-4f83-ae0f-599ecf51e624?galleryindex=3&sort=-created; Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis Personal Papers. Textual Materials. Letitia Baldrige Files. Christmas: 1961 (2 of 2 folders). JBKOPP-SF037-009. John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum.
(5) Eileen Remington, “Alexandria Holds Host of Memories From White House,” Unidentified clipping, Undated, Ancestry, https://www.ancestry.com/mediaui-viewer/collection/1030/tree/1902256/person/340178186716/media/239d1cb7-f240-4f83-ae0f-599ecf51e624?galleryindex=3&sort=-created.
(6) Eddie Glassel Thomas in the Virginia, U.S., Death Records, 1912-2014, Virginia Department of Health; Richmond, VA, USA; Virginia, Deaths, 1912-2014, Ancestry.com; “Edward Glassel “Eddie” Thomas,” Find a Grave, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/100736085/edward-glassel-thomas. - Birthplace
- Caroline County, Virginia, USA
- Related Workers
- William S. ReevesGardens, Grounds, and Flower Shop, circa 1905 – 1945
- John E. HiserTrades, circa 1901 – 1953