Leopoldo T. Osano
- Position
- Cook
- Years in President's House
- 1963 – 1966
- Gender
- Male
- Race/Ethnicity
- Asian
- Presidency
- Lyndon B. Johnson
- Biography
Leopoldo Teves “Leo” Osano was born on December 13, 1924 in the Philippines.1 Osano served in the U. S. Navy as a steward during World War II and remained in the Navy for thirty years; navy stewards were responsible for serving officers, cleaning state rooms, and assisting cooks in the galley.2
Details about his White House service are scarce, but according to the Lewiston Daily Sun, “from June, 1963 to August, 1966, he cooked for Presidents Kennedy and Johnson” at the White House.3 It is unclear if he worked on the Kitchen staff, in the Navy Mess, or on board presidential transportation – all of the above were common for White House Navy assignments.
After leaving the White House, Osano pursued a new career as a barber.4 Leopoldo Osano died on October 21, 2016, and was buried at Washington Crossing National Cemetery in Newtown, Pennsylvania.5
- “Leopoldo “Leo” Osano,” Find a Grave, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/171840961/leopoldo-osano; Leopoldo Teves Osano in U.S., Veterans' Gravesites, ca. 1775-2019, National Cemetery Administration; U.S. Veterans' Gravesites, https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/8750/records/7022124?tid=&pid=&queryId=152abdb7-426c-43b4-b707-f1a8535bdcdd&_phsrc=WwA790&_phstart=successSource.
- “Leopoldo “Leo” Osano,” Find a Grave, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/171840961/leopoldo-osano; Leopoldo Teves Osano in U.S., Veterans' Gravesites, ca. 1775-2019, National Cemetery Administration; U.S. Veterans' Gravesites, https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/8750/records/7022124?tid=&pid=&queryId=152abdb7-426c-43b4-b707-f1a8535bdcdd&_phsrc=WwA790&_phstart=successSourc; According to the Bureau of Naval Personnel: “President William McKinley signed an executive order in 1901 allowing the Navy to enlist 500 Filipinos as part of the insular force. Secretary of the Navy John D. Long signed General Order No. 40, 8 April 1901, promulgating the executive order. Prior to 1946, Filipinos were generally assigned to steward duties.” See “Filipinos in the United States Navy,” Naval History and Heritage Command, https://www.history.navy.mil/content/history/nhhc/research/library/online-reading-room/title-list-alphabetically/f/filipinos-in-the-united-states-navy.html.
- “White House Cook to Become Barber,” The Lewiston Daily Sun (Lewiston, Maine), January 22, 1969, pg. 3.
- Ibid.
- “Leopoldo “Leo” Osano,” Find a Grave, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/171840961/leopoldo-osano; “Leopoldo ‘Leo’ Osano,” Legacy, https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/inquirer/name/leopoldo-osano-obituary?id=9415106.
- Birthplace
- Philippines
- Burial Place
- Washington Crossing National Cemetery
- Blue markers indicate birthplaces and green markers indicate burial places. Black markers are used for places of both birth and burial.