Elizabeth McDuffie

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"Elizabeth McDuffie," White House Workers History Project, White House Historical Association, 2026, https://whha.whirlihost.com/Detail/workers/901.

Position: Maid
Years in President's House: 1933 – 1945
Legal Status: Free Person
Gender: Female
Race/Ethnicity: Black or African American
Presidency: Franklin D. Roosevelt
Biography: Elizabeth “Lizzie” McDuffie was born on September 13, 1881, in Newton County, Georgia. (1) As a young woman, she worked as a children’s nurse or governess, and during World War I she volunteered with service clubs that assisted Black soldiers returning from the European warfront. (2) Her husband, Irvin “Mac” McDuffie, was valet to Franklin D. Roosevelt, and when Roosevelt moved to the White House in 1933, Mac accompanied him as his valet, and Lizzie joined their staff as a maid; the two of them lived upstairs in the Residence. (3) The McDuffies were quite close to the president and first lady, and served as a liaison between the Roosevelts and the Black community. In particular, Lizzie McDuffie campaigned for Roosevelt’s re-election among Black voters, and brought concerns about inequality in New Deal programs to the president’s desk. Beginning in 1936, she also served as the secretary for the United Government Employees, lobbying for improved wages and work conditions for domestic workers. (4) Lizzie was also involved in social and charitable organizations including the Young Women’s Christian Association and the Urban League. (5) McDuffie was also known to many in the White House as a talented entertainer– she even went to New York to audition for the part of Mammy in "Gone with the Wind;” however, the role was given to Hattie McDaniel. (6)
In November 1939, Irvin McDuffie retired due to ill health and struggles with alcoholism, while Lizzie McDuffie remained on the White House staff. (7) She continued to work for the Roosevelts and was at Warm Springs, Georgia when Roosevelt died there on April 12, 1945. (8) She retired soon after.
In the years that followed, McDuffie often shared her experiences at the White House and penned a memoir “The Back Door of the White House,” although it was never published. (9) She died on November 27, 1966, and was buried at South-View Cemetery in Atlanta, Georgia. (10)
: (1) McDuffie, Lizzie. “Manuscript, The Back Door of the White House, circa 1960”. The Back Door of the White House, Unpublished Manuscript. Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library. http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12322/auc.090:0260.
(2) Ibid.
(3) Sarah Fling and Cameron Katz, “Lizzie McDuffie, White House Maid, Lobbied FDR on Civil Rights,” Teen Vogue, March 30, 2023, https://www.teenvogue.com/story/lizzie-mcduffie-fdr-civil-rights.
(4) Sarah Fling and Cameron Katz, “Lizzie McDuffie, White House Maid, Lobbied FDR on Civil Rights,” Teen Vogue, March 30, 2023, https://www.teenvogue.com/story/lizzie-mcduffie-fdr-civil-rights; “‘F.D.R. Valet’s Wife on New Deal Trail’, circa 1936”. Elizabeth and Irvin McDuffie Papers. Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library. http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12322/auc.090:0151; “‘Mrs. McDuffie Takes Stump for Roosevelt’, circa 1936”. Elizabeth and Irvin McDuffie Papers. Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library. http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12322/auc.090:0171.
(5) McDuffie, Lizzie. “Manuscript, The Back Door of the White House, circa 1960”. The Back Door of the White House, Unpublished Manuscript. Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library. http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12322/auc.090:0260.
(6) McDaniel became the first Black actor to win an Academy Award for her role in the film. “‘White House Maid Always Wanted to Be an Actress’, circa 1938”. Elizabeth and Irvin McDuffie Papers. Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library. http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12322/auc.090:0160; “‘White House Upstairs Maid Gets a Fat Part in ’Gone,’’ January 3, 1938”. Elizabeth and Irvin McDuffie Papers. Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library. http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12322/auc.090:0162.
(7) Eleanor Roosevelt, "My Day, November 25, 1939," The Eleanor Roosevelt Papers Digital Edition (2017), accessed 3/3/2026, https://www2.gwu.edu/~erpapers/myday/displaydoc.cfm?_y=1939&_f=md055433; “‘McDuffie Out as F.D.R. Valet’, December 16, 1939”. Elizabeth and Irvin McDuffie Papers. Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library. http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12322/auc.090:0181; “‘Roosevelt ’Wore Him Out,’ ex Valet Admits’, July 8, 1944”. Elizabeth and Irvin McDuffie Papers. Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library. http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12322/auc.090:0178; “Irvin McDuffie,” Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site, National Park Service, https://www.nps.gov/people/irvin-mcduffie.htm.
(8) McDuffie, Lizzie. “Manuscript, The Back Door of the White House, circa 1960”. The Back Door of the White House, Unpublished Manuscript. Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library. http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12322/auc.090:0260.
McDuffie, Lizzie. “Manuscript, The Back Door of the White House, circa 1960”. The Back Door of the White House, Unpublished Manuscript. Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library. http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12322/auc.090:0260.
(10) Ashley Sankey and Tiffany Harte, “More Than a Housekeeper: The Story of Elizabeth McDuffie,” Atlanta History Center, https://www.atlantahistorycenter.com/blog/more-than-a-housekeeper-the-story-of-elizabeth-mcduffie.
Birthplace: Newton County, Georgia, USA

Related Workers: Irvin H. McDuffie
Valets, Lady's Maids, and First Family Attendants, 1933 – 1939; Mary F. Crowder
Valets, Lady's Maids, and First Family Attendants, 1933 – 1945

Related Association Content: https://www.whitehousehistory.org/presidential-valets; https://www.whitehousehistory.org/staff-at-the-roosevelt-household