David R. Francis

David R. Francis
David Rowland Francis
20th United States Secretary of the Interior
In office
September 3, 1896 – March 5, 1897
Preceded by M. Hoke Smith
Succeeded by Cornelius Newton Bliss
27th Governor of Missouri
In office
January 14, 1889 – January 9, 1893
Preceded by Albert P. Morehouse
Succeeded by William Joel Stone
26th Mayor of St. Louis, Missouri
In office
April 14, 1885 – January 2, 1889
Preceded by William L. Ewing
Succeeded by Edward A. Noonan
Personal details
Born October 1, 1850(1850-10-01)
Richmond, Kentucky
Died January 15, 1927(1927-01-15) (aged 76)
St. Louis, Missouri
Political party Democratic
Spouse(s) Jane P. Francis
Alma mater Washington University in St. Louis
Profession Politician, Merchant

David Rowland Francis (October 1, 1850 – January 15, 1927) was an American politician. He served in various positions including Mayor of Saint Louis, the 27th Governor of Missouri, and United States Secretary of the Interior. He was the U.S. Ambassador to Russia between 1916 and 1917, during the Russian Revolution of 1917. He was a Democrat.

Francis was born in Richmond, Kentucky in 1850. He graduated from Washington University in St. Louis in 1870 where he was number 2 on the rolls of the Alpha Iota Chapter of Beta Theta Pi fraternity. He was a successful businessman in St. Louis and served as the president of the Merchant's Exchange. He was married to the former Jane Perry, a granddaughter of former Missouri State Treasurer James Earickson.[1]

He was elected the mayor of St. Louis, Missouri in 1885. In 1888 he was elected Governor of Missouri, becoming the only Mayor of St. Louis to date elected Governor of the state. Francis served as the United States Secretary of the Interior under President Grover Cleveland between 1896 and 1897.

Francis was one of the main promoters of the St. Louis World's Fair of 1904, serving as President of the Louisiana Purchase Exposition.

President Woodrow Wilson appointed Francis as the U.S. Ambassador to Russia between 1916 and 1917, during the Russian Revolution of 1917.

Francis died in St. Louis January 15, 1927, and was buried at Bellefontaine Cemetery.

In 1895 the University of Missouri dedicated David R. Francis Quadrangle in honor of the former governor who is credited with keeping the university in Columbia after the fire of Academic Hall in 1892. Francis insisted that the state's land-grant university remain in a central location, rather than moving to Sedalia, as many state legislators desired. Instead, Sedalia was awarded the Missouri State Fair as compensation. A bronze bust of Francis' face sits at the south end of Francis Quad near the steps of Jesse Hall. A popular MU student tradition is to rub Governor Francis' nose before taking a test in order to get an 'A.'

Francis Field, the track/soccer/football stadium at Washington University in St. Louis as well as the adjacent Gymnasium are named in Francis' honor. Francis Field was the site of the 1904 Summer Olympics in which Francis attended the opening ceremony and officially opened the games as the representative for the host nation.

In 1916, he gave 60 acres (240,000 m2) of land to the city of St. Louis, Missouri as a Christmas gift. Today it is a park that bears his name.[2]

References

  • "Installed". St. Louis Post-Dispatch: p. 2. 14 April 1885. 
  • "The City Hall Change". St. Louis Post-Dispatch: p. 10. 2 January 1889. 

Further reading

  • Barnes, Harper. 2001. Standing on a volcano: the life and times of David Rowland Francis. St. Louis: Missouri Historical Society Press in association with the Francis Press. ISBN 1883982138
  • Francis, David Rowland, and Jamie H. Cockfield. 1981. Dollars and diplomacy: Ambassador David Rowland Francis and the fall of tsarism, 1916-17. Durham, N.C.: Duke University Press.
  • Francis, David Rowland, Robert Chadwell Williams, and Robert Lester. 1986. Russia in transition: the diplomatic papers of David R. Francis, U.S. Ambassador to Russia, 1916-1918. Frederick, Md: University Publications of America.

External links

Political offices
Preceded by
William L. Ewing
Mayor of St. Louis, Missouri
1885 – 1889
Succeeded by
Edward Noonan
Preceded by
Albert P. Morehouse
Governor of Missouri
1889 – 1893
Succeeded by
William Joel Stone
Preceded by
Michael Hoke Smith
United States Secretary of the Interior
Served under: Grover Cleveland

1896–1897
Succeeded by
Cornelius Newton Bliss
Diplomatic posts
Preceded by
George T. Marye
United States Ambassador to Russia
1916 - 1917
Succeeded by
Last ambassador to Russian Empire
Preceded by
France Pierre de Coubertin
President of Organizing Committee for Summer Olympic Games
1904
Succeeded by
United Kingdom Edward Battell

Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужен реферат?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • David J. Francis — Born David J Francis December 2, 1970 (1970 12 02) (age 40) Ottawa, Ontario Canada Other names Dave Francis Occupation Film directo …   Wikipedia

  • David Rowland Francis — (* 1. Oktober 1850 in Richmond, Madison County, Kentucky; † 15. Januar 1927 in St. Louis, Missouri) war ein US amerikanischer Politiker. Er war Bürgermeister der Stadt St. Louis, Gouv …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • David "Panama" Francis — (December 21 1918 in Miami, Florida – November 13, 2001 in Orlando, Florida) was an American swing jazz drummer.He began performing at the age of eight, and booked his first night club at the age of thirteen. His career took off after he moved to …   Wikipedia

  • David R. Francis Quadrangle — Francis Quadrangle Historic District U.S. National Register of Historic Places U.S. Historic District …   Wikipedia

  • David Francis — may refer to: David Panama Francis, American drummer David R. Francis, American politician David Hywel Francis, known as Hywel Francis, Welsh politician David Francis (cyclist), former member of the USA Cycling team Dave Francis, Ohio State… …   Wikipedia

  • Francis Alÿs — Francis Alÿs, né en 1959 à Anvers, est un artiste touchant à tous les médias. Il vit et travaille à Mexico depuis 1986. Sommaire 1 Biographie 2 Expositions 3 Bibliographie 4 …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Francis — ist als eine Variante von Franciscus ein männlicher und weiblicher Vorname lateinischer Herkunft[1][2], der auch als Familienname vorkommt. Eine Kurzform des Vornamens ist Fran. Inhaltsverzeichnis 1 Namensträger 1.1 …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • David Francis — ist der Name folgender Personen: David Francis (Kurator) (* 1935), britischer Filmarchivar und Kurator David Albert Francis, bekannt als Panama Francis (1918–2001), US amerikanischer Jazz Schlagzeuger David Rowland Francis (1850–1927), US… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Francis David Langhorne Astor — CH (* 5. März 1912 in London; † 7. März 2001 ebd.) war ein britischer Journalist und Zeitungsverleger (The Observer). Inhaltsverzeichnis 1 Leben 1.1 Frühe Jahre (1912–1936) …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • David Hallam — is a British Labour Party politician. He was Member of the European Parliament for the Herefordshire and Shropshire constituency in England, in the 1994 1999 European Parliament. Hallam was an active member of the Agricultural and Rural Affairs… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”