Arthur Barclay (31 July 1854 – 10 July 1938) was the 15th

president of Liberia The president of the Republic of Liberia is the head of state and government of Liberia. The president serves as the leader of the executive branch and as commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Liberia. Prior to the independence of Liberia ...

from 1904 to 1912.

Early life and education

Barclay was born at

Bridgetown Bridgetown (UN/LOCODE: BB BGI) is the capital and largest city of Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Island ...

Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estimate). ...

, on 31 July 1854, the tenth of twelve children of Anthony and Sarah Barclay. He was the father of Anthony Barclay, who served on the Supreme Court of Liberia, and uncle of the 18th president,

Edwin Barclay Edwin James Barclay (5 January 1882 – 6 November 1955) was a Liberian politician, poet, and musician who served as the 18th president of Liberia from 1930 until 1944. He was a member of the True Whig political party, which dominated the poli ...

. His first teacher was his oldest sister, Antoinette Barclay. He later entered the Preparatory Department of

Liberia College The University of Liberia (UL or LU in older versions of abbreviation) is a publicly funded institution of higher learning located in Monrovia, Liberia. Authorized by the national government in 1851, the university opened in 1862 as Liberia Coll ...

, under the principalship of Anthony T. Ferguson. Having completed the course prescribed, he matriculated into the Collegiate Department and graduated as a Bachelor of Arts in the Class of 1873.

Career

In 1877, he was appointed principal of the Preparatory Department of his alma mater, which position he held for a number of years, and served during the vacation as chief clerk of the House of Representatives. His later services to the said institution were: professor, member of the board of trustees, and sometimes acting president. He was called to the bar of

Montserrado County Montserrado County is a county in the northwestern portion of the West African nation of Liberia containing its national capital, Monrovia. One of 15 counties that comprise the first-level of administrative division in the nation, it has 17 sub p ...

in 1877, and after practicing law for three years, he attained the rank of counsellor of the Supreme Court. His first official position was private secretary to President

Joseph Jenkins Roberts Joseph Jenkins Roberts (March 15, 1809 – February 24, 1876) was an African-American merchant who emigrated to Liberia in 1829, where he became a politician. Elected as the first (1848–1856) and seventh (1872–1876) president of Lib ...

in 1874. His second position was judge of the Court of Quarter Sessions and Common Pleas of Montserrado County to which he was appointed by President Alfred F. Russell in 1883. In 1885, President Hilary R. W. Johnson appointed him sub-treasurer of

, which he held for 5 years. He was

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

of Monrovia from 1892 to 1902. In 1892, President

Joseph James Cheeseman Joseph James Cheeseman (March 7, 1843 – November 12, 1896) was the 12th president of Liberia. Born at Edina in Grand Bassa County, he was elected three times on the True Whig ticket. Cheeseman was educated at Liberia College (now Univers ...

elevated him to the cabinet position as

postmaster A postmaster is the head of an individual post office, responsible for all postal activities in a specific post office. When a postmaster is responsible for an entire mail distribution organization (usually sponsored by a national government), ...

-general and then to secretary of state. Upon the death of his predecessor H. A. Williams in 1896, he was appointed

secretary of the treasury The United States secretary of the treasury is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury, and is the chief financial officer of the federal government of the United States. The secretary of the treasury serves as the principal a ...

, which he held until his election to the presidency in May 1903. Inaugurated in January 1904, he served until January 1912. After his retirement served as president of Liberia College from 1914 to 1917. He served upon the following diplomatic commissions: * In 1893, associated with

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

A. B. King, and William Rothery, he was sent as a commissioner to the World's Fair at

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

, United States. * In 1897, associated with

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

Stevens, he went to

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

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, to arrange with the

Council of Foreign Bondholders The Corporation of Foreign Bondholders (also known as the Council of Foreign Bondholders) was a British association established in London in 1868 by private holders of debt securities issued by foreign governments, states and municipalities. In an ...

for the amortization of the loan of 1870, contracted in the administration of President

Edward James Roye Edward James Roye (February 3, 1815 – February 11, 1872) served as the fifth president of Liberia from 1870 to his overthrow in 1871 and subsequent death. He had previously served as the fourth Chief Justice of Liberia from 1865 until 1868. ...

, which had been in default for over 20 years. * In 1901, he was associated with Chief Justice Z. B. Roberts and Senator A. B. King on diplomatic missions to England and

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Presidency (1904–1912)

Arthur Barclay was president from 1904 to 1912. In addition to continued internal unrest, the country faced a severe economic crisis and huge indebtedness to European creditors. In the decades after 1868, escalating economic difficulties weakened the state's dominance over the coastal indigenous population. Conditions worsened, as the cost of imports was far greater than the income generated by exports of coffee, rice, palm oil, sugarcane, and timber. Liberia tried desperately to modernize its largely agricultural economy. In 1907, while president of the nation, he headed the mission to arrange boundary disputes with the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

and French Governments, associating with F. E. R. Johnson, secretary of state, and T. McCants Stewart, Deputy

Attorney-General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

of Liberia.

George Washington Ellis George Washington Ellis (May 4, 1875 – November 26, 1919) was an African-American attorney, writer, and speaker. Ellis was born on May 4, 1875, in Weston, Missouri. He attended the University of Kansas, graduating in 1893 with a Bachelor of Law ...

wrote of Barclay in 1911,

He brought with his elevation to the presidency a deep thinker, a wide public experience and equipment, a gentleman of modest and retiring manners, a faithful public servant and a brave champion of public measures. He surrounded himself with the ablest men of his country and his administrations will be remembered for many notable civic triumphs in behalf of the Liberian state: the definition of Liberian boundaries, the pacification of the interior, increased control of the native races, organization of the Liberian Frontier Police Force, better supervision of the Liberian customs, and repeated attempts at judicial and other domestic reforms

Under his government, the

Liberian Frontier Force The Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL) are the armed forces of the Republic of Liberia. Tracing its origins to a militia that was formed by the first black colonists in what is now Liberia, it was founded as the Liberian Frontier Force in 1908, and r ...

was created, which later evolved into the Liberian Armed Forces.

Death

He died at his home in

Monrovia Monrovia () is the capital city of the West African country of Liberia. Founded in 1822, it is located on Cape Mesurado on the Atlantic coast and as of the 2008 census had 1,010,970 residents, home to 29% of Liberia’s total population. As the ...

on 10 July 1938, at 4:30 in the afternoon. He was interred at

Palm Grove Cemetery Palm Grove Cemetery is a cemetery near downtown Monrovia, the capital city of Liberia. During the Tolbert administration, the cemetery became the focus of the national Decoration Day, which continued to be observed after Tolbert was murdered in a ...

References

Bibliography

*Nathaniel R. Richardson, ''Liberia's Past and Present.'' London: The Diplomatic Press and Publishing Company, 1959.

External links

*See History of Liberia, external links {{DEFAULTSORT:Barclay, Arthur Americo-Liberian people 1854 births 1938 deaths Presidents of Liberia Foreign Ministers of Liberia Finance Ministers of Liberia Barbadian emigrants to Liberia Burials in Liberia University of Liberia alumni People from Montserrado County Presidents of the University of Liberia People from Bridgetown True Whig Party politicians 20th-century Liberian politicians