David R. Ayers
Cite this Page
"David R. Ayers," White House Workers History Project, White House Historical Association, 2026, https://whha.whirlihost.com/Detail/workers/874.
- Position
- Grounds Laborer
- Years in President's House
- circa 1929
- Legal Status
- Free Person
- Gender
- Male
- Race/Ethnicity
- White
- Presidency
- Herbert Hoover
- Biography
- David Ransom Ayers was born in Marion, North Carolina on May 19, 1898. (1) During World War I, Ayers served in the U.S. Army, and a posting at the Washington Barracks brought him to Washington, D.C. around 1920. (2) He went on to work as a laborer for the Office of Public Buildings and Parks, and as early as 1929, he was assigned to the White House under the supervision of Head Gardener Charles Henlock. Ayers may have worked on the White House Grounds or at the White House greenhouses near the Bureau of Engraving and Printing on the National Mall. (3) It is unclear how long he worked at the White House, but he continued to work for the Interior Department as a gardener in the years that followed. (4) David R. Ayers died on February 4, 1974, and was buried at Gate of Heaven Cemetery in Silver Spring, Maryland. (5)
- (1) David Ransom Ayers 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 District of Columbia, 10/16/1940-03/31/1947; Record Group: Records of the Selective Service System, 147; Box: 8, Ancestry.com; David R Ayers in the 1930 United States Federal Census, Year: 1930; Census Place: Washington, District of Columbia; Page: 8B; Enumeration District: 0174; FHL microfilm: 2340031, Ancestry.com.
(2) David R Ayers in the North Carolina, World War I Service Cards, 1917-1919, Ancestry.com. North Carolina, World War I Service Cards, 1917-1919 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2019; David Ayers in the 1920 United States Federal Census, Year: 1920; Census Place: Washington, Washington, District of Columbia; Roll: T625_207; Page: 5B; Enumeration District: 96, Ancestry.com.
(3) Employees on Duty at the Executive Office, 1929, Lou Henry Hoover Papers, Subject Files, White House Christmas 1929, Herbert Hoover Presidential Library.
(4) David Ayars in the 1940 United States Federal Census, Year: 1940; Census Place: Washington, District of Columbia, District of Columbia; Roll: m-t0627-00555; Page: 1A; Enumeration District: 1-87, Ancestry.com; David R Ayers 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: Washington, Washington, District of Columbia; Roll: 5907; Page: 71; Enumeration District: 1-283, Ancestry.com.
(5) “Ayers, David R.,” Washington Post, February 7, 1974, pg. D4. - Birthplace
- Marion, North Carolina, USA