Royal Meeker
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Royal Meeker (February 23, 1873 – August 16, 1953) was a progressive American economist, born at
Quaker Lake Quaker Lake is a lake located south of Coldspring, New York. Fish species present in the lake are rainbow trout, brown trout, brook trout, and black bullhead. There is a state owned carry down launch located in Allegany State Park off NY-280. Th ...
,
Susquehanna County Susquehanna County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is part of Northeastern Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 38,434 Its county seat is Montrose. The county was created on February 21, 1810, from p ...
,
Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
. He graduated from Iowa State College in 1898, then studied with E.R.A. Seligman at
Columbia Columbia may refer to: * Columbia (personification), the historical female national personification of the United States, and a poetic name for America Places North America Natural features * Columbia Plateau, a geologic and geographic region i ...
(Ph.D., 1906) and for a year at the
University of Leipzig Leipzig University (german: Universität Leipzig), in Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, is one of the world's oldest universities and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. The university was founded on 2 December ...
(1903–1904). His dissertation was entitled ''History of Shipping Subsidies'' (1905). From 1906 to 1913, Meeker was a professor of history, economics, and political science at
Ursinus College Ursinus College is a private liberal arts college in Collegeville, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1869 and occupies a 170-acre campus. History 19th century In 1867, members of the German Reformed Church began plans to establish a college wh ...
,
Collegeville, Pennsylvania Collegeville is a borough in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, a suburb outside of Philadelphia on Perkiomen Creek. Collegeville was incorporated in 1896. It is the location of Ursinus College which opened in 1869. The population was 5,089 at ...
and a preceptor and professor of economics at
Princeton Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the nin ...
. He knew
Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...
, then the president of Princeton, and they served together on New Jersey political boards. Both were associated with the Progressive movement for an active role for government. President
Wilson Wilson may refer to: People *Wilson (name) ** List of people with given name Wilson ** List of people with surname Wilson * Wilson (footballer, 1927–1998), Brazilian manager and defender * Wilson (footballer, born 1984), full name Wilson R ...
appointed Meeker Commissioner of Labor Statistics in 1913. As the commissioner of the
Bureau of Labor Statistics The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is a unit of the United States Department of Labor. It is the principal fact-finding agency for the U.S. government in the broad field of labor economics and statistics and serves as a principal agency of ...
, Meeker managed special economic studies during World War I and began its regular publication, the ''
Monthly Labor Review The ''Monthly Labor Review'' (''MLR'') is published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is a unit of the United States Department of Labor. It is the principal fact-finding agency for the U.S. governmen ...
'', in 1915. In 1916 he was elected as a
Fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...
of the
American Statistical Association The American Statistical Association (ASA) is the main professional organization for statisticians and related professionals in the United States. It was founded in Boston, Massachusetts on November 27, 1839, and is the second oldest continuousl ...
. Meeker resigned from the administration in June 1920 to take up the opportunity to help organize the new
International Labour Organization The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a United Nations agency whose mandate is to advance social and economic justice by setting international labour standards. Founded in October 1919 under the League of Nations, it is the first and o ...
, where he was the Chief of the Scientific Division from 1920 to 1923. Meeker served as Pennsylvania Secretary of Labor and Industry from 1923–1924, and later joined the faculty of
Carleton College Carleton College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Northfield, Minnesota. Founded in 1866, it had 2,105 undergraduate students and 269 faculty members in fall 2016. The 200-acre main campus is between Northfield and the 800-acre Cowlin ...
(1926–1927) and
Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the w ...
(1930–1936, perhaps longer). He was Director of Research of the Connecticut Department of Labor (1941–1946). He died in
New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134 ...
in 1953. Meeker advocated progressive reforms, including a minimum wage, national health insurance, child labor restrictions combined with strong, State-controlled schools, workmen's compensation, and a nationwide system of public employment offices.http://www.bls.gov/bls/history/commissioners/meeker.htm.


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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Meeker, Royal Columbia University alumni 1873 births 1953 deaths American economists American historians American statisticians Princeton University faculty Yale University faculty Bureau of Labor Statistics Fellows of the American Statistical Association Woodrow Wilson administration personnel