Paul G. Drayer
Cite this Page
"Paul G. Drayer," White House Workers History Project, White House Historical Association, 2026, https://whha.whirlihost.com/Detail/workers/962.
- Position
- Chauffeur
- Years in President's House
- 1942 – 1946
- Legal Status
- Free Person
- Gender
- Male
- Race/Ethnicity
- White
- Biography
- Paul G. Drayer was born in Duquesne, Pennsylvania on September 5, 1906. (1) Drayer joined the United States Army in 1924, serving with the 12th and 8th Cavalry of Texas and the 3rd Cavalry of Virginia. (2) From 1942-1946 he was stationed in Washington, D.C. and assigned to the White House garage. (3) As a staff chauffeur, he drove several first family members, including First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt and First Daughter Margaret Truman, as well as foreign dignitaries and military leaders like generals George C. Marshall, Dwight D. Eisenhower, and John Pershing. He also drove in Franklin D. Roosevelt’s 1945 Inaugural Parade. (4) After World War II, he worked at the New Cumberland Army Depot in Pennsylvania, but he called his White House years the “best assignment” he ever had. (5) Outside of his career, Drayer was active in several veteran organizations and fraternal societies. Paul Drayer died on October 5, 1978, and was buried at Mount Olivet Cemetery in York County, Pennsylvania. (6)
- (1) Paul G Drayer in the Pennsylvania, U.S., Veteran Compensation Application Files, WWII, 1950-1966, Ancestry.com. Pennsylvania, U.S., Veteran Compensation Application Files, WWII, 1950-1966 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015.
(2) “Former 1st Family Chauffeur Recalls ‘Best Assignment’,” The Patriot-News (Harrisburg, Pennsylvania), January 16, 1966, pg. 21; Paul G Drayer in the 1930 United States Federal Census, Year: 1930; Census Place: Fort Myer, Arlington, Virginia; Page: 1B; Enumeration District: 0012; FHL microfilm: 2342170, Ancestry.com; Paul Drayer in the 1940 United States Federal Census, Year: 1940; Census Place: Washington, District of Columbia, District of Columbia; Roll: m-t0627-00555; Page: 63B; Enumeration District: 1-88, Ancestry.com
(3) “Former 1st Family Chauffeur Recalls ‘Best Assignment’,” The Patriot-News (Harrisburg, Pennsylvania), January 16, 1966, pg. 21; "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.
(4) “Former 1st Family Chauffeur Recalls ‘Best Assignment’,” The Patriot-News (Harrisburg, Pennsylvania), January 16, 1966, pg. 21.
(5) Ibid; “Paul G. Drayer,” The Patriot-News (Harrisburg, Pennsylvania), October 8, 1978, pg. 18.
(6) “Paul G. Drayer,” The Patriot-News (Harrisburg, Pennsylvania), October 8, 1978, pg. 18; “Drayer,” The Patriot-News (Harrisburg, Pennsylvania), October 7, 1978, pg. 6. - Birthplace
- Duquesne, Pennsylvania, USA