Robert Peet Skinner (February 24, 1866 – July 1, 1960) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

diplomat A diplomat (from grc, δίπλωμα; romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state or an intergovernmental institution such as the United Nations or the European Union to conduct diplomacy with one or more other states or internati ...

, editor, and publisher.

Biography

Skinner was born in

Massillon, Ohio Massillon is a city in Stark County, Ohio, Stark County in the U.S. state of Ohio, approximately west of Canton, Ohio, Canton, south of Akron, and south of Cleveland. The population was 32,146 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. Mass ...

on February 24, 1866 to August T. Skinner and Cecelia van Rensselaer. At the age of 19, he became the editor and owner of a local paper called ''The Evening Independent.'' Through his work with the paper he would become acquainted with

William McKinley William McKinley (January 29, 1843September 14, 1901) was the 25th president of the United States, serving from 1897 until his assassination in 1901. As a politician he led a realignment that made his Republican Party largely dominant in ...

, whom Skinner would support for the

presidency A presidency is an administration or the executive, the collective administrative and governmental entity that exists around an office of president of a state or nation. Although often the executive branch of government, and often personified by a ...

. On June 17, 1897, he married Helen Wales. Through his wife's family and his own connections, Skinner would be awarded for his support for President McKinley with a wedding gift, a role in the McKinley administration. McKinley made him the United States

Consul Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states throug ...

Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...

from 1897 to 1901; starting up his career in

foreign service Diplomatic service is the body of diplomats and foreign policy officers maintained by the government of a country to communicate with the governments of other countries. Diplomatic personnel obtains diplomatic immunity when they are accredited to o ...

. He would later become the United States Consul General in

from 1901 to 1908; United States Consul General at the

Consulate General of the United States, Hamburg The Consulate General of the United States of America in Hamburg is a diplomatic mission representing the United States of America to the city of Hamburg and the State of Schleswig Holstein in the Federal Republic of Germany. The Government of Ham ...

from 1908 to 1914; United States Consul General at the

Embassy of the United States, Berlin The Embassy of the United States of America in Berlin is the diplomatic mission of the United States of America in the Federal Republic of Germany. It started in 1797, with the appointment of John Quincy Adams to Berlin, the capital of Prussia. T ...

in 1914; United States Consul General at the

Embassy of the United States, London The Embassy of the United States of America in London is the diplomatic mission of the United States in the United Kingdom. It is located in Nine Elms and is the largest American embassy in Western Europe and the focal point for events relating ...

from 1914 to 1924. During his time in

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 ...

, Skinner would become familiar with French colonial governance. He would become particularly interested with the prospect of establishing a trade deal for the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

with

Abyssinia The Ethiopian Empire (), also formerly known by the exonym Abyssinia, or just simply known as Ethiopia (; Amharic and Tigrinya: ኢትዮጵያ , , Oromo: Itoophiyaa, Somali: Itoobiya, Afar: ''Itiyoophiyaa''), was an empire that historica ...

. In 1903 President Roosevelt would take interest in Skinner's proposal and order the diplomat to go to Africa. He arrived along with other representatives and a contingent of thirty

U.S. marines The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the Marines, maritime land force military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary warfare, exped ...

in October of that year; they sailed into

Djibouti Djibouti, ar, جيبوتي ', french: link=no, Djibouti, so, Jabuuti officially the Republic of Djibouti, is a country in the Horn of Africa, bordered by Somalia to the south, Ethiopia to the southwest, Eritrea in the north, and the Red ...

from

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

before traveling to their destination via camel over a twenty-two day trek. Upon arriving they were escorted by 5,000 native troops to their audience with King Menelik. Ultimately the mission would be seen as a success, there would be increased trade between the two countries, due to a negotiated ten year commercial treaty. His mission would also see a growth of American fascination with their new African partner and provided a foothold into the continent for the still growing country. Upon returning to the United States, Skinner would publish an account of this mission in 1906. He was the

United States Ambassador to Greece This is a list of United States ambassadors to Greece. List of ambassadors List of ambassadors from the United States to Greece. ;1868–1899: *Charles K. Tuckerman, Charles Keating Tuckerman (Minister 1868–71) *John M. Francis (Minister 1871� ...

from 1926 to 1932;

United States Ambassador to Estonia This is a list of ambassadors of the United States to Estonia. The United States has maintained continuous official diplomatic relations with Estonia (as well as Latvia and Lithuania) since 1922, when one ambassador, resident in Riga, Latvia, wa ...

from 1931 to 1933;

United States Ambassador to Latvia The United States first established diplomatic relations with the Baltic states ( Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia) in 1922. One ambassador, resident in Riga, Latvia, was appointed to all three nations. Relations with the three nations were broken a ...

from 1931 to 1933; United States Ambassador to Lithuania, 1931 to 1933;

United States Ambassador to Turkey The United States has maintained many high level contacts with Turkey since the 19th century. Ottoman Empire Chargé d'Affaires *George W. Erving (before 1831) * David Porter (September 13, 1831 – May 23, 1840) Minister Resident * David Port ...

from 1933 to 1936. He died in

Belfast, Maine Belfast is a city in Waldo County, Maine, Waldo County, Maine, in the United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the city population was 6,938. Located at the mouth of the Passagassawakeag River estuary on Belfast Bay (Main ...

on July 1, 1960. He was buried in Massillon City Cemetery in

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Skinner, Robert Peet 1866 births 1960 deaths People from Massillon, Ohio Journalists from Ohio American male writers Writers from Ohio Ethiopia–United States relations Ambassadors of the United States to Greece Ambassadors of the United States to Turkey Ambassadors of the United States to Estonia Ambassadors of the United States to Latvia Ambassadors of the United States to Lithuania United States Foreign Service personnel 20th-century American diplomats