Elspeth Connochie

Elspeth “Connie” Connochie was born on June 27, 1873, in Ayton, Scotland.¹ Little is known about her early life, private affairs, or activities outside her time at the White House. By 1901, she moved to Durham, England, where she was listed as a household servant. Over the next several years, she held similar roles in various locations across the United Kingdom before immigrating to the United States in 1916. 

She later worked in New York and Massachusetts before she was hired as a governess for Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt’s grandchildren, including Anna Eleanor “Sistie” Dall, Curtis “Buzz” Dall Jr., Chandler Roosevelt, and Franklin D. Roosevelt III at the White House, where she lived in the Residence.² Details about Connie’s life following her White House service remain scarce. However, she eventually returned to Scotland, where she died on October 9, 1962. She is buried in the Ayton Churchyard.³