Alice Sanger

Alice B. Sanger was an American secretary and the first woman to become part of the White House Staff in 1890.

Early life Alice B. Sanger was born in Watertown, Massachusetts in 1864. and her mother was Susan Webster Smith. While a child, her parents moved to Indianapolis, Indiana, where she completed her education. Her father was the traffic manager for a railroad company. After graduating high school at age 15, she began studying stenography and typewriting. She was a skilled stenographer, able to dictate 200 words per minute in shorthand. Her spelling was said to be "absolutely perfect".

White House On January 2, 1890, Sanger became the first woman to join the White House staff. She was appointed by President Harrison and was the presidential secretary. One newspaper article described her as knowing "more about Mr. Harrison's affairs, both private and executive, than anybody else in the world". She was noted for her "wonderful ability to keep political secrets", and referred to as a "jewel of secrecy". Her responsibilities at the Post Office included arranging contracts for telegraph and cable rates, indexing annual reports, making a daily digest of the Congressional Record, editing the Postal Guide, and tracking all legislation affecting the Office.

Sanger was promoted by 1930 to the Department's Personnel Officer. She worked there for forty years, retiring on January 31, 1934, in order to spend more time on her art.

Flag Day Sanger is the originator of the US holiday Flag Day. She was known as the "Betsy Ross of the Post Office Department".

Sanger died on September 4, 1941, in Washington, D.C.