John E. Deadmon
Cite this Page
"John E. Deadmon," White House Workers History Project, White House Historical Association, 2026, https://whha.whirlihost.com/Detail/workers/926.
- Positions
- Gardener
- Engineer
- Years in President's House
- circa 1940
- Legal Status
- Free Person
- Gender
- Male
- Race/Ethnicity
- White
- Presidency
- Franklin D. Roosevelt
- Biography
- John Edward Deadmon was born on April 22, 1904, in Davie County, North Carolina. (1) Deadmon attended the University of North Carolina, and later worked as life insurance agent in Washington, D.C. (2) By 1940, he was working as a gardener and caretaker at the White House under the supervision of Head Gardener William Saunders Reeves; that year, he appeared in a Washington Post article about the staff who maintained the White House gardens and grounds. (3) The 1940 staff Christmas list includes him among the engineering staff, as well. (4) By 1942, Deadmon had left White House service and instead worked for the War Department at Bolling Field. (5) He died on June 30, 1970, and was buried at Loudon Park National Cemetery in Baltimore, Maryland. (6)
- (1) John Edward Deadmon 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: 57, Ancestry.com.
(2) “John Edward Deadmon,” Find a Grave, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/269792662/john-edward-deadmon; Boyd’s District of Columbia Directory Vol. LXXVI (R. L. Polk and Co., 1934), pg. 473.
(3) “Park Service Maintains Grounds at White House,” Washington Post, May 5, 1940, pg. OT7; John E Deadmon in the 1940 United States Federal Census,Year: 1940; Census Place: Washington, District of Columbia, District of Columbia; Roll: m-t0627-00565; Page: 7A; Enumeration District: 1-370, Ancestry.com.
(4) "White Regular Employees of the White House Christmas, 1940," Folder: Christmas Subject File, Grace Tully Papers, Franklin D. Roosevelt Library, Hyde Park, New York.
(5) John Edward Deadmon 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: 57, Ancestry.com.
(6) “John Edward Deadmon,” Find a Grave, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/269792662/john-edward-deadmon. - Birthplace
- Davie County, North Carolina, USA