Hiawatha Payne
Cite this Page
"Hiawatha Payne," White House Workers History Project, White House Historical Association, 2026, https://whha.whirlihost.com/Detail/workers/993.
- Position
- Custodian
- Years in President's House
- circa 1944 – 1950
- Legal Status
- Free Person
- Gender
- Male
- Race/Ethnicity
- Black or African American
- Biography
- Hiawatha Payne was born in Pocahontas County, West Virginia on April 5, 1912. (1) Throughout his life, he worked a variety of jobs, including waiting tables, teaching piano, and working for the Works Progress Administration at Gravelly Point (today home to the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport) in Washington, D.C. (2) Evidently, Payne had a passion for music, and attended the YMCA Music School in Washington, D.C. outside of work. (3) By 1944, he was on staff at the White House, working on the night cleaning force for the East Wing. (4) He is documented on the staff there through 1950, appearing on that year’s Census as a White House charman, or cleaner. (5) Hiawatha Payne died on August 6, 1965, and was buried at Woodlawn Cemetery in Washington, D.C. (6)
- (1) Hiawatha Payne in 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: 177, Ancestry.com.
(2) Hiawatha Payne in the 1930 United States Federal Census, Year: 1930; Census Place: Roanoke, Roanoke (Independent City), Virginia; Page: 35B; Enumeration District: 0009; FHL microfilm: 2342215, Ancestry.com; Heawatha Payne in the 1940 United States Federal Census, Year: 1940; Census Place: Washington, District of Columbia, District of Columbia; Roll: m-t0627-00553; Page: 6B; Enumeration District: 1-17, Ancestry.com; Hiawatha Payne in 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: 177, Ancestry.com.
(3) “Cripples Praise Work of YMCA School,” Washington Afro-American (Washington, D.C.), July 27, 1940, pg. 3.
(4) "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.
(5) Hiawatha Payne 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: 5908; Page: 16; Enumeration District: 1-293, Ancestry.com.
“Hiawatha Payne,” Find a Grave, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/58915583/hiawatha-payne. - Birthplace
- Pocahontas County, West Virginia, USA