Laura (Johnson) Dandridge (abt. 1852 - 1918)

Born about 1852 in Scott, Kentucky, United States

Wife of Ed Dandridge — married 4 Jan 1894 in Louisville, Jefferson, Kentucky, United States

Died 1 Feb 1918 at about age 66 in Lexington, Fayette, Kentucky, United States

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Biography

Dolly (Johnson) Dandridge is Notable.

Laura "Dollie" (Johnson) Dandridge was employed as head chef in the White House during the administrations of Benjamin Harrison and Grover Cleveland^[1].

Dolly was born about 1852, and thought to be the daughter of William Johnson and Emily Miller, enslaved near Georgetown in Scott County, Kentucky, by Mrs James Miller. She was the cook for President Benjamin Harrison and for a short time President Grover Cleveland (second term). She married Ed Dandridge at Louisville in 1894 ^[2] and they resided in Lexington, Kentucky ^[3]. She passed away in 1918^[4][5].

Research Notes

• It is unknown if Dolly or Dollie is her preferred spelling. ^[6]
• According to newspaper accounts, she was enslaved by Mrs. Jane Miller. The 1860 Slave Census for Jane Miller shows she held eleven slaves, though only one female born 1855 is close to Dollie's speculated birth date ^[7].

"[President] Harrison lost the next election to Grover Cleveland. Dolly worked for Cleveland for about a year, but he fired her and then tried to rehire her. Dolly refused his offer. Instead she returned to Kentucky, met and, in 1894, married Ed Dandridge, a cook for the Fleischman (yeast company) family of Louisville.

The couple eventually came to Lexington, where Dolly opened restaurants in several downtown locations. Dolly Johnson died in February 1918 and was buried in Cemetery No. 2; Ed died about six months later and was also buried in No. 2. There is a large marker in Section F, row 2, between Sidney Woodard and Mary Thompson, with just "DANDRIDGE" engraved upon it. It looks as if the site may have had a tablet at one time, but the tablet is no longer there. And of course they might be buried over in Section D with Emma Bailey [Dolly Johnson's daughter], the grave site is no longer marked."

Sources

1. ↑ https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laura_Johnson_Dandridge
2. ↑ "Kentucky, County Marriages, 1797-1954," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q2QD-BL57 : 9 March 2021), Ed. Dandridge and Laura Johnson, 4 Jan 1894; citing Marriage, Louisville, Jefferson, Kentucky, United States, various county clerks and county courts, Kentucky; FHL microfilm 818,952.
3. ↑ "United States Census, 1910", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M28B-G7W : Mon Sep 18 20:32:50 UTC 2023), Entry for Dolly Dandridge and Ed Dandridge, 1910.
4. ↑ "Kentucky, Vital Record Indexes, 1911-1999," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QKC9-DW79 : 11 February 2018), Dollie Dandridge, 01 Feb 1918; citing Death, Fayette, Kentucky, United States, Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives, Frankfort.
5. ↑ Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/96033920/dollie-dandridge: accessed 25 September 2023), memorial page for Dollie Johnson Dandridge (unknown–1 Dec 1918), Find a Grave Memorial ID 96033920, citing African Cemetery #2, Lexington, Fayette County, Kentucky, USA; Maintained by nk (contributor 47218626).
6. ↑ https://www.whitehousehistory.org/kitchen-genius-dolly-johnson-at-the-white-house#footnote-3
7. ↑ "United States Census (Slave Schedule), 1860", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:WKKY-TJ3Z : Thu Sep 14 17:26:49 UTC 2023), Entry for Jane Miller and , 1860.

• “Johnson, Laura "Dolly",” Notable Kentucky African Americans Database, accessed September 25, 2023, https://nkaa.uky.edu/nkaa/items/show/1447.
• https://www.whitehousehistory.org/kitchen-genius-dolly-johnson-at-the-white-house