Edgar Addison Bancroft (November 20, 1857 – July 28, 1925) was an American lawyer and diplomat. He served as

United States Ambassador to Japan The is the ambassador from the United States of America to Japan. History Since the opening of Japan by Commodore Matthew C. Perry, in 1854, the U.S. has maintained diplomatic relations with Japan, except for the ten-year period between the ...

from 1924 to 1925. US Department of State, Office of the HistorianEdgar Addison Bancroft, 1858-1925
/ref>

Early life

Bancroft was born in

Galesburg, Illinois Galesburg is a city in Knox County, Illinois, United States. The city is northwest of Peoria. At the 2010 census, its population was 32,195. It is the county seat of Knox County and the principal city of the Galesburg Micropolitan Statistical ...

. He was educated at Knox College and the

Columbia University Law School Columbia Law School (Columbia Law or CLS) is the Law school in the United States, law school of Columbia University, a Private university, private Ivy League university in New York City. Columbia Law is widely regarded as one of the most prestig ...

."The Cabinet: Bancroft and Sheffield"
''Time'' (US), September 8, 1924. His brother, Frederic, was a noted historian. He was also related to

Aaron Bancroft Aaron Bancroft (November 10, 1755 – August 19, 1839) was an American clergyman. He was born in Reading, Massachusetts to Samuel Bancroft and Lydia Parker. Biography He began his studies during the American Revolution, and served as a minutema ...

, a biographer of George Washington, and to

George Bancroft George Bancroft (October 3, 1800 – January 17, 1891) was an American historian, statesman and Democratic politician who was prominent in promoting secondary education both in his home state of Massachusetts and at the national and internati ...

, a diplomat and historian.

Career

Bancroft was counsel for the

Santa Fe Railway The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often referred to as the Santa Fe or AT&SF, was one of the larger railroads in the United States. The railroad was chartered in February 1859 to serve the cities of Atchison and Topeka, Kansas, and ...

and the International Harvester Co. In 1919 he was appointed to the

Chicago Commission on Race Relations The Chicago Commission on Race Relations was a non-partisan, interracial investigative committee, appointed by Illinois governor Frank Lowden. The commission was set up after the Chicago riots of July and August 1919 in "which thirty-eight lives ...

. President

Calvin Coolidge Calvin Coolidge (born John Calvin Coolidge Jr.; ; July 4, 1872January 5, 1933) was the 30th president of the United States from 1923 to 1929. Born in Vermont, Coolidge was a History of the Republican Party (United States), Republican lawyer ...

named him Ambassador to Japan during a recess of the Senate on September 23, 1924. Ambassador Bancroft presented his credentials to the Japanese government on November 19, 1924. His appointment was subsequently confirmed by the Senate on January 21, 1925. Ambassador Bancroft died in Karuizawa, Japan on July 28, 1925. As a gesture of good-will, the Japanese government sent the

light cruiser A light cruiser is a type of small or medium-sized warship. The term is a shortening of the phrase "light armored cruiser", describing a small ship that carried armor in the same way as an armored cruiser: a protective belt and deck. Prior to thi ...

to San Pedro in

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

with his remains.Tate, ''Transpacific Steam''; page 215

Selected works

In a statistical overview derived from writings by and about Edgar Bancroft,

OCLC OCLC, Inc., doing business as OCLC, See also: is an American nonprofit cooperative organization "that provides shared technology services, original research, and community programs for its membership and the library community at large". It was ...

WorldCat WorldCat is a union catalog that itemizes the collections of tens of thousands of institutions (mostly libraries), in many countries, that are current or past members of the OCLC global cooperative. It is operated by OCLC, Inc. Many of the OCL ...

encompasses roughly 40+ works in 50+ publications in two languages and 200+ library holdings. WorldCat Identities

Bancroft, Edgar Addison 1857-1925
/ref> * ''The Chicago Strike of 1894'' (1895) * ''The Moral Sentiment of the People: the Index and Foundation of National Greatnes'' (1896) * ''The Sherman Law and Recent Decisions'' (1911) * ''In Memoriam Robert Mather 1859-1911'' (1912) * ''Doctor Gunsaulus, the citizen'' (1921) * ''The Mission of America and Other War-Time Speeches of Edgar A. Bancroft'' (1922) * ''Speeches and Addresses of His Excellency the Late Edgar A. Bancroft, American Ambassador and Honorary President of the America-Japan Society'' (1926) * ''The Mission of America, and Other War-Time Speeches of Edgar A. Bancroft'' (1927)

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bancroft, Edgar Addison 1857 births 1925 deaths United States Department of State officials Ambassadors of the United States to Japan Columbia Law School alumni Knox College (Illinois) alumni 20th-century American diplomats