Clement Ellis Conger (October 15, 1912 – January 11, 2004) was an American

museum curator A curator (from la, cura, meaning "to take care") is a manager or overseer. When working with cultural organizations, a curator is typically a "collections curator" or an "exhibitions curator", and has multifaceted tasks dependent on the parti ...

and

public servant The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil servants hired on professional merit rather than appointed or elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leaders ...

. He served as director of the

U.S. Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government responsible for the country's fore ...

Office of Fine Arts The Office of Fine Arts (M/FA) is a division of the U.S. Department of State reporting to the Under Secretary of State for Management. The mission of the office is to administer appropriate settings for dialogue between U.S. officials and their ...

, where in that role he worked as curator of both the

Diplomatic Reception Rooms The Diplomatic Reception Rooms at the U.S. Department of State constitute forty-two principal rooms and offices where the Secretary of State conducts the business of modern diplomacy. Located on the seventh and eighth floors of the Harry S Trum ...

and

Blair House Blair House, also known as The President's Guest House, is an official residence in Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States. The President's Guest House has been called "the world's most exclusive hotel" because it is primarily used ...

. He also served as

Curator of the White House The White House Office of the Curator is charged with the conservation and study of the collection of fine art, furniture and decorative objects used to furnish both the public and private rooms of the White House as an official residence and a ...

, at the pleasure of Presidents

Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

Ford Ford commonly refers to: * Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford * Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river Ford may also refer to: Ford Motor Company * Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company * Ford F ...

Carter Carter(s), or Carter's, Tha Carter, or The Carter(s), may refer to: Geography United States * Carter, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Carter, Mississippi, an unincorporated community * Carter, Montana, a census-designated place * Carter, ...

, and

Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

. Prior to working as a curator, Conger served as a

Foreign Service Officer A Foreign Service Officer (FSO) is a commissioned member of the United States Foreign Service. Foreign Service Officers formulate and implement the foreign policy of the United States. FSOs spend most of their careers overseas as members of U ...

, as the Deputy

Chief of Protocol of the United States In the United States, the chief of protocol is an officer of the United States Department of State responsible for advising the president of the United States, the vice president of the United States, and the United States secretary of state o ...

and as the Assistant Secretary of the

Combined Chiefs of Staff The Combined Chiefs of Staff (CCS) was the supreme military staff for the United States and Britain during World War II. It set all the major policy decisions for the two nations, subject to the approvals of British Prime Minister Winston Churchil ...

Life

He graduated from Strayer College. He worked as an office manager for the ''Chicago Tribune'', and for U.S. Rubber Co. He was assistant secretary for the

, during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. He worked for the State Department, and became deputy chief of protocol, from 1958 to 1961. In 1992, he received the Henry Francis du Pont Award from the

Winterthur Museum, Garden and Library Winterthur Museum, Garden and Library is an American estate and museum in Winterthur, Delaware. Pronounced “winter-tour," Winterthur houses one of the richest collections of Americana in the United States. The museum and estate were the home of ...

, which recognizes awardees' "contributions of national significance to the knowledge, preservation, and enjoyment of American decorative arts, architecture, landscape design, and gardens."

Works

*Clement E. Conger, Mary K. Itsell, ''Treasures of State: Fine and Decorative Art in the Diplomatic Reception Rooms of the U.S. Department of State'', H.N. Abrams, 1991,

References

External links

Reminiscences of Clement Conger : oral history, 1972.
''Columbia University'' * *http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?041+ful+SJ187+pdf *https://web.archive.org/web/20111012205352/http://thenewnixon.org/2009/10/05/pat-nixon-and-the-golden-age-of-the-white-house/ *https://web.archive.org/web/20110826141712/http://sackheritage.com/articles/articles.php?articleID=13 {{DEFAULTSORT:Conger, Clement 1912 births 2004 deaths People from Harrisonburg, Virginia White House Curators George H. W. Bush administration personnel Reagan administration personnel Carter administration personnel Ford administration personnel Nixon administration personnel