Grave of Irwin Hood "Ike" Hoover at Glenwood Cemetery in Washington, D.C., in the United States. Hoover was born on October 24, 1871, in Washington, D.C., the son of a grocer. His first job was as a telephone operator, but he later became an electrician with the Edison Electric Company. He was sent to the White House on May 6, 1891, to install the first electric lights,and he was asked by President Harrison to to leave Edison Electric and join the White House staff as an electrician. In 1904, Hoover accepted a position as an usher at the White House. Hoover was appointed Chief Usher by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1909, and served until his death in 1933.