Thomas L. Daniels (July 4, 1892 - May 1977) was an American businessman and diplomat. He served as the chairman of

Archer Daniels Midland The Archer-Daniels-Midland Company, commonly known as ADM, is an American multinational food processing and commodities trading corporation founded in 1902 and headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. The company operates more than 270 plants and 42 ...

Early life

Thomas L. Daniels was born in 1892 in Piqua, Ohio. His father,

John W. Daniels John W. Daniels (February 23, 1857 – June 8, 1931) was an American businessman. He was the co-founder and chairman of Archer Daniels Midland. Early life John W. Daniels was born on February 23, 1857, in Piqua, Ohio. Career Daniels first w ...

, was the co-founder of

. Daniels graduated from

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 wo ...

in 1914.

Career

Daniels began his career at his family business, Archer Daniels Midland, in 1914. Daniels joined the

United States Foreign Service The United States Foreign Service is the primary personnel system used by the diplomatic service of the United States federal government, under the aegis of the United States Department of State. It consists of over 13,000 professionals carryi ...

in 1921. He "was assigned to the American delegation to the Disarmament Conference in Washington, and later to the American embassies in Brussels, Rio de Janeiro and Rome." 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 was "chief in the chemical division of the

War Production Board The War Production Board (WPB) was an agency of the United States government that supervised war production during World War II. President Franklin D. Roosevelt established it in January 1942, with Executive Order 9024. The WPB replaced the Sup ...

and later as head of the Food Requirements Committee of the

War Food Administration The War Food Administration was a United States government agency that existed from 1943 to 1945. The War Food Administration was responsible for the production and distribution of food to meet war and essential civilian needs during World War II. ...

." Daniels served as the president of Archer Daniels Midland from 1947 to 1958 and as its chairman from 1958 to 1964.

Personal life and death

Daniels married Francis Hancock. They had three sons Forest, John and David and a adopted daughter, Carol. John H. Daniels became President and CEO of ADM in 1962. The family resided at 7 Heather Place in St. Paul, Minnesota and in Gem Lake, Minnesota. He was the captain of the

Twin Cities Twin cities are a special case of two neighboring cities or urban centres that grow into a single conurbation – or narrowly separated urban areas – over time. There are no formal criteria, but twin cities are generally comparable in statu ...

Blues, a

polo Polo is a ball game played on horseback, a traditional field sport and one of the world's oldest known team sports. The game is played by two opposing teams with the objective of scoring using a long-handled wooden mallet to hit a small hard ...

team. He was the chairman of the Minneapolis Institute of Art from 1961 to 1963, and he served on the board of the

Minnesota Orchestra The Minnesota Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Founded originally as the Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra in 1903, the Minnesota Orchestra plays most of its concerts at Minneapolis's Orchestra Hall. History Em ...

. Daniels died in 1977. His funeral was held at the Church of St. John the Evangelist in St. Paul, Minnesota.

References

1892 births 1977 deaths Businesspeople from Saint Paul, Minnesota Yale University alumni 20th-century American businesspeople American diplomats American polo players Archer Daniels Midland people {{US-business-bio-1890s-stub