Frederick Mayfield

Frederick “Freddie” Mayfield was born on June 1, 1925 in Greenville, South Carolina.¹ During World War II, Mayfield served in the U.S. Marine Corps; afterward, he worked in Washington, D.C. as a truck driver for a sheet metal distributor.² In 1962, he joined the White House staff as a houseman; his duties entailed moving furniture and cleaning and organizing spaces throughout the home.³ He later transitioned to the role of doorman, opening doors and operating elevators and greeting and directing the first family and their guests in his signature black tailcoat and white tie.⁴

Mayfield’s responsibilities as doorman meant he often worked in close proximity to the president. First Daughter Julie Nixon Eisenhower recalled that on St. Patrick’s Day 1973, her father Richard Nixon “had admired …Freddie Mayfield’s wide, kelly-green bow tie. Impulsively, he asked Freddie if he would mind trading neckwear for the evening. At 8 P.M. when the President greeted his guests at an evening of entertainment with country-and-western singer Merle Haggard, he was smiling broadly, Freddie’s green tie at his neck.”⁵ Freddie also accompanied President Nixon on a fishing trip to Florida. During Gerald Ford’s presidency, he invited Mayfield to join him for a brisk January swim in the White House Swimming Pool.⁶

Freddie Mayfield worked at the White House until he passed away on May 12, 1984. Press Secretary Sheila Tate called him “an institution,” while First Lady Nancy Reagan noted “It doesn’t seem right here without him.”⁷ President Reagan wrote in his diary entry for the day: “I should say we got the shocking news that Freddie our usher here in the W.H.—a man we’ve come to love, died of a heart attack. He will be greatly missed.” Nancy Reagan attended his funeral alongside members of the Residence staff.⁸