The United States Department of Commerce and Labor was a short-lived Cabinet department of the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...

, which was concerned with fostering and supervising

big business Big business involves large-scale corporate-controlled financial or business activities. As a term, it describes activities that run from "huge transactions" to the more general "doing big things". In corporate jargon, the concept is commonly ...

. It existed from 1903 to 1913. The

United States Department of Commerce The United States Department of Commerce (DOC) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government. It is responsible for gathering data for business and governmental decision making, establishing industrial standards, catalyzing econ ...

is its successor agency, and it also is the predecessor of the

United States Department of Labor The United States Department of Labor (DOL) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government. It is responsible for the administration of federal laws governing occupational safety and health, wage and hour standards, unemp ...

Origins and establishment

Calls in the

for the creation of an

executive department The executive branch is the part of government which executes or enforces the law. Function The scope of executive power varies greatly depending on the political context in which it emerges, and it can change over time in a given country. In ...

of the

United States Government The Federal Government of the United States of America (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the Federation#Federal governments, national government of the United States. The U.S. federal government is composed of three distinct ...

devoted to fostering and supervising

business Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or Trade, buying and selling Product (business), products (such as goods and Service (economics), services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for ...

and

manufacturing Manufacturing is the creation or production of goods with the help of equipment, labor, machines, tools, and chemical or biological processing or formulation. It is the essence of the secondary sector of the economy. The term may refer ...

can be traced to least as far back as 1787. By the latter decades of the 19th century, the momentum behind the creation of such a department grew, its advocates pointing to the existence of various U.S. agencies to promote and regulate

agriculture Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...

fisheries Fishery can mean either the enterprise of raising or harvesting fish and other aquatic life or, more commonly, the site where such enterprise takes place ( a.k.a., fishing grounds). Commercial fisheries include wild fisheries and fish farm ...

forestry Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests and woodlands for associated resources for human and Natural environment, environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and ...

labor Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

mining Mining is the Resource extraction, extraction of valuable geological materials and minerals from the surface of the Earth. Mining is required to obtain most materials that cannot be grown through agriculture, agricultural processes, or feasib ...

, and

transportation Transport (in British English) or transportation (in American English) is the intentional Motion, movement of humans, animals, and cargo, goods from one location to another. Mode of transport, Modes of transport include aviation, air, land tr ...

and noting that the United States was virtually alone among the countries of the world in lacking a government agency to perform the same function for

commerce Commerce is the organized Complex system, system of activities, functions, procedures and institutions that directly or indirectly contribute to the smooth, unhindered large-scale exchange (distribution through Financial transaction, transactiona ...

and

industry Industry may refer to: Economics * Industry (economics), a generally categorized branch of economic activity * Industry (manufacturing), a specific branch of economic activity, typically in factories with machinery * The wider industrial sector ...

. In the first session of the

57th United States Congress The 57th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from March 4, 1901, to ...

(1901–1903), a bill was introduced in the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

to address this shortcoming by establishing the Department of Commerce and Labor. It passed the Senate with little or no opposition, and during the second session of the 57th Congress passed the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

as well.

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), also known as Teddy or T.R., was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt previously was involved in New York (state), New York politics, incl ...

signed the bill into law on February 14, 1903, creating the department.''From Lighthouses to Laserbeams'', p. 7. The department was given "the province and duty to ... foster, promote, and develop the foreign and domestic commerce, the mining, manufacturing,

shipping Freight transport, also referred to as freight forwarding, is the physical process of transporting commodities and merchandise goods and cargo. The term shipping originally referred to transport by sea but in American English, it has been ...

, and

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment (Freshwater ecosystem, freshwater or Marine ecosystem, marine), but may also be caught from Fish stocking, stocked Body of water, ...

industries, the labor interests, and the transportation facilities of the United States."''Organization and Law of the Department of Commerce and Labor'', p. 25.''From Lighthouses to Laserbeams'', p. 9. The United States Secretary of Commerce and Labor was the head of the department and a member of the

United States Cabinet The Cabinet of the United States is the principal official advisory body to the president of the United States. The Cabinet generally meets with the president in Cabinet Room (White House), a room adjacent to the Oval Office in the West Wing of ...

, and an Assistant Secretary of Commerce and Labor served under the secretary. On February 16, 1903, President Roosevelt appointed his personal secretary, George B. Cortelyou, as the first secretary of commerce and labor.''Organization and Law of the Department of Commerce and Labor'', p. 22. He was confirmed by the U.S. Senate the same day and established a temporary headquarters at the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, on February 18, 1903. After the department moved into another temporary headquarters in downtown Washington, D.C., it began operations on March 16, 1903. It opened its permanent headquarters in Washington, D.C., on June 17, 1903. The department's subordinate agencies were placed under its control on July 1, 1903.''Organization and Law of the Department of Commerce and Labor'', p. 23. In remarks for the occasion, Secretary Cortelyou noted that the subordination of agencies to the Department of Commerce and Labor on that day had given the department a total workforce of 10,125 people.''From Lighthouses to Laserbeams'', p. 8.

Subordinate agencies

On July 1, 1903, the Department of Commerce and Labor took control of 13 subordinate agencies, making the department one of the largest and most complicated in the U.S. Government. Although the youngest executive department, it took the responsibility for the oversight of some of the oldest U.S. Government agencies and programs. Nine of its subordinate agencies were transferred from other executive departments, two previously were independent agencies, and two were new agencies established as of that date:''Organization and Law of the Department of Commerce and Labor'', pp. 24, 26–28.Circular 97, p. 5.Archives Catalog: Department of Commerce. Coast and Geodetic Survey. 1913-7/13/1965 Organization Authority Record Accessed 29 October 2022
/ref> *The United States Lighthouse Board, established in 1852 and responsible for

lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lens (optics), lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Ligh ...

s and other

aids to navigation A navigational aid (NAVAID), also known as aid to navigation (ATON), is any sort of signal, markers or guidance equipment which aids the traveler in navigation, usually nautical or aviation travel. Common types of such aids include lighthouses, ...

, was transferred from the

United States Department of the Treasury The Department of the Treasury (USDT) is the Treasury, national treasury and finance department of the federal government of the United States. It is one of 15 current United States federal executive departments, U.S. government departments. ...

. The transfer included the Lighthouse Establishment, established in 1791 and overseen by the Lighthouse Board. *The

Bureau of the Census The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, established in 1902 and responsible for the decennial

United States census The United States census (plural censuses or census) is a census that is legally mandated by the Constitution of the United States. It takes place every ten years. The first census after the American Revolution was taken in 1790 United States ce ...

and for producing data on the

American people Americans are the Citizenship of the United States, citizens and United States nationality law, nationals of the United States, United States of America.; ; Law of the United States, U.S. federal law does not equate nationality with Race (hu ...

and

economy An economy is an area of the Production (economics), production, Distribution (economics), distribution and trade, as well as Consumption (economics), consumption of Goods (economics), goods and Service (economics), services. In general, it is ...

, was transferred from the

United States Department of the Interior The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government responsible for the management and conservation ...

. *The

United States Coast and Geodetic Survey The United States Coast and Geodetic Survey ( USC&GS; known as the Survey of the Coast from 1807 to 1836, and as the United States Coast Survey from 1836 until 1878) was the first scientific agency of the Federal government of the United State ...

, established in 1807, known as the Survey of the Coast from 1807 to 1836 and as the United States Coast Survey from 1836 to 1878 and responsible for

hydrographic survey Hydrographic survey is the science of measurement and description of features which affect maritime navigation, marine construction, dredging, offshore wind farms, offshore oil exploration and drilling and related activities. Surveys may als ...

s of coastal waters,

hydrography Hydrography is the branch of applied sciences which deals with the measurement and description of the physical features of oceans, seas, coastal areas, lakes and rivers, as well as with the prediction of their change over time, for the primary ...

oceanography Oceanography (), also known as oceanology, sea science, ocean science, and marine science, is the scientific study of the ocean, including its physics, chemistry, biology, and geology. It is an Earth science, which covers a wide range of to ...

geology Geology (). is a branch of natural science concerned with the Earth and other astronomical objects, the rocks of which they are composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Earth ...

geophysics Geophysics () is a subject of natural science concerned with the physical processes and Physical property, properties of Earth and its surrounding space environment, and the use of quantitative methods for their analysis. Geophysicists conduct i ...

geodesy Geodesy or geodetics is the science of measuring and representing the Figure of the Earth, geometry, Gravity of Earth, gravity, and Earth's rotation, spatial orientation of the Earth in Relative change, temporally varying Three-dimensional spac ...

topography Topography is the study of the forms and features of land surfaces. The topography of an area may refer to the landforms and features themselves, or a description or depiction in maps. Topography is a field of geoscience and planetary sci ...

meteorology Meteorology is the scientific study of the Earth's atmosphere and short-term atmospheric phenomena (i.e. weather), with a focus on weather forecasting. It has applications in the military, aviation, energy production, transport, agricultur ...

astronomy Astronomy is a natural science that studies celestial objects and the phenomena that occur in the cosmos. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and their overall evolution. Objects of interest includ ...

cartography Cartography (; from , 'papyrus, sheet of paper, map'; and , 'write') is the study and practice of making and using maps. Combining science, aesthetics and technique, cartography builds on the premise that reality (or an imagined reality) can ...

navigation Navigation is a field of study that focuses on the process of monitoring and controlling the motion, movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another.Bowditch, 2003:799. The field of navigation includes four general categories: land navig ...

pilotage Piloting or pilotage is the process of navigating on water or in the air using fixed points of reference on the sea or on land, usually with reference to a nautical chart or aeronautical chart to obtain a fix of the position of the vessel or air ...

, and the study of

tide Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the Moon (and to a much lesser extent, the Sun) and are also caused by the Earth and Moon orbiting one another. Tide tables ...

s, was transferred from the Department of the Treasury. * The Bureau of

Statistics Statistics (from German language, German: ', "description of a State (polity), state, a country") is the discipline that concerns the collection, organization, analysis, interpretation, and presentation of data. In applying statistics to a s ...

(an ancestor of the

Bureau of Economic Analysis The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) of the United States Department of Commerce is a U.S. government agency that provides official macroeconomic and industry statistics, most notably reports about the gross domestic product (GDP) of the United ...

), established in 1866, transferred from the Department of the Treasury. The Bureau of Statistics was responsible for collecting and publishing statistics on domestic and foreign commerce. * The Bureau of Foreign Commerce, established in 1842 and known as the Bureau of Statistics, State Department, from 1874 to 1897, transferred from the

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

. The Bureau of Foreign Commerce and its responsibility for gathering and publishing statistics on foreign commerce were consolidated with and merged into the Department of Commerce and Labor's Bureau of Statistics upon transfer, and the Bureau of Foreign Commerce lost its distinct identity. * The

National Bureau of Standards The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is an agency of the United States Department of Commerce whose mission is to promote American innovation and industrial competitiveness. NIST's activities are organized into physical sc ...

, established in 1830 as the Office of Weights and Measures and known as that until 1901, responsible for standardizing

weights and measures A unit of measurement, or unit of measure, is a definite magnitude (mathematics), magnitude of a quantity, defined and adopted by convention or by law, that is used as a standard for measurement of the same kind of quantity. Any other qua ...

in the United States, transferred from the Department of the Treasury. * The

Steamboat Inspection Service The Steamboat Inspection Service was a United States agency created in 1871 to safeguard lives and property at sea. It merged with the Bureau of Navigation in 1932 to form the Bureau of Navigation and Steamboat Inspection, which in 1936 was reo ...

, established in 1871 and responsible for the safety of lives and property at sea, transferred from the Department of the Treasury. * The United States Commission of Fish and Fisheries, a previously independent agency established in 1871 and widely referred to as the

United States Fish Commission The United States Fish Commission, formally known as the United States Commission of Fish and Fisheries, was an agency of the United States government created in 1871 to investigate, promote, and preserve the Fishery, fisheries of the United St ...

, responsible for promoting, preserving, and investigating the

of the United States. Upon its transfer to the Department of Commerce and Labor, it was reorganized and renamed the United States Bureau of Fisheries. * The Department of Labor, established in 1884 and known as the Bureau of Labor until 1888, transferred from the Department of the Interior. Lacking executive status, it was renamed the Bureau of Labor under the Department of Commerce and Labor and given the responsibility for the collection of information on labor hours and earnings and "means of promoting material, social, intellectual, moral prosperity." It was the ancestor 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 government of the United States, U.S. government in the broad field of labor economics, labor economics and ...

. * The Bureau of Navigation, established in 1884 and responsible for enforcing laws related to the construction, equipment, operation, inspection, safety, and documentation of

merchant ship A merchant ship, merchant vessel, trading vessel, or merchantman is a watercraft that transports cargo or carries passengers for hire. This is in contrast to pleasure craft, which are used for personal recreation, and naval ships, which are ...

s, transferred from the Department of the Treasury. * The Bureau of Immigration (the ancestor of the

Immigration and Naturalization Service The United States Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) was a United States federal government agency under the United States Department of Labor from 1933 to 1940 and under the United States Department of Justice from 1940 to 2003. Refe ...

), established in 1891 as the Office of the Superintendent of

Immigration Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not usual residents or where they do not possess nationality in order to settle as Permanent residency, permanent residents. Commuting, Commuter ...

, responsible for applying immigration law, and first referred to as the "Bureau of Immigration" in 1895, transferred from the Department of the Treasury. * The

Bureau of Corporations The Bureau of Corporations, predecessor to the Federal Trade Commission, was created as an investigatory agency within the Department of Commerce and Labor in the United States. The Bureau and the Department were created by Congress on February 1 ...

, a new agency established on July 1, 1903, to investigate the organization, conduct, and management of any

corporation A corporation or body corporate is an individual or a group of people, such as an association or company, that has been authorized by the State (polity), state to act as a single entity (a legal entity recognized by private and public law as ...

joint stock company A joint-stock company (JSC) is a business entity in which shares of the company's capital stock, stock can be bought and sold by shareholders. Each shareholder owns company stock in proportion, evidenced by their share (finance), shares (certifi ...

, or corporate combination engaged in commerce between

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

s or with foreign countries, except for

common carrier A common carrier in common law countries (corresponding to a public carrier in some civil law (legal system), civil law systems,Encyclopædia Britannica CD 2000 "Civil-law public carrier" from "carriage of goods" usually called simply a ''carrier ...

s already under the jurisdiction of the

Interstate Commerce Commission The Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) was a regulatory agency in the United States created by the Interstate Commerce Act of 1887. The agency's original purpose was to regulate railroads (and later Trucking industry in the United States, truc ...

in accordance with the

Interstate Commerce Act of 1887 The Interstate Commerce Act of 1887 is a United States federal law that was designed to regulate the railroad industry, particularly its monopolistic practices. The Act required that railroad rates be "reasonable and just", but did not empowe ...

. In essence, the Interstate Commerce Commission had jurisdiction over

railroad Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

s and the Bureau of Corporations over all other industries engaged in interstate or international commerce. * The Bureau of Manufactures, a new agency authorized as of July 1, 1903, to foster, promote, and develop the manufacturing industries of the United States and domestic and foreign markets for them, as well as to collect and compile statistics relevant to that duty. The Bureau of Manufactures was not actually established until 1905.''From Lighthouses to Laserbeams'', p. 11. In addition, the jurisdiction, supervision, and control of the fisheries of the

District of Alaska The District of Alaska was the federal government’s designation for Alaska from May 17, 1884, to August 24, 1912, when it became the Territory of Alaska. Previously (1867–1884) it had been known as the Department of Alaska, a military des ...

, including the harvesting of

fur seal Fur seals are any of nine species of pinnipeds belonging to the subfamily Arctocephalinae in the family Otariidae. They are much more closely related to sea lions than Earless seal, true seals, and share with them external ears (Pinna (anatomy ...

s and

salmon Salmon (; : salmon) are any of several list of commercially important fish species, commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the genera ''Salmo'' and ''Oncorhynchus'' of the family (biology), family Salmonidae, native ...

, was transferred from the Department of the Treasury to the Department of Commerce and Labor as of July 1, 1903.

1903–1913

Cortelyou served as secretary until June 1904, when he left to manage Theodore Roosevelt's 1904 reelection campaign.

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

congressman Victor H. Metcalf succeeded him as secretary and described Cortelyou's work in setting up the department during his short tenure as having been "as thorough and complete" as possible. Under Metcalf in 1905, the department established the Bureau of Manufactures, which was the component most directly related to the department's main mission of promoting industry and commerce.

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

businessman and former U.S. Minister to the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

Oscar S. Straus and

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

politician and lawyer Charles Nagel served as the final two secretaries of commerce and labor. During their tenures, the department increasingly became a focal point for requests for many kinds of scientific,

sociological Sociology is the scientific study of human society that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. The term sociology was coined in ...

, statistical, and commercial information.

Dissolution

During the decade of the Department of Commerce and Labor′s existence, American manufacturing expanded and American laborers increasingly moved from farming to manufacturing jobs. This trend put increasing pressure on the U.S. Government to separate labor-related functions from the department and give labor its own executive department. In response, on March 4, 1913, President

William Howard Taft William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) served as the 27th president of the United States from 1909 to 1913 and the tenth chief justice of the United States from 1921 to 1930. He is the only person to have held both offices. ...

on his last day in office signed legislation renaming the department the

and transferring its bureaus and agencies specializing in labor to the new

, which was established on the same date. Corresponding with the division of the department in 1913, the Secretary of Commerce and Labor's position was divided into separate positions of

United States Secretary of Commerce The United States secretary of commerce (SecCom) is the head of the United States Department of Commerce. The secretary serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States on all matters relating to commerce. The secretary rep ...

and United States Secretary of Labor. The Bureau of Corporations became part of the Department of Commerce in 1913, but was spun off as an independent agency, the

Federal Trade Commission The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is an independent agency of the United States government whose principal mission is the enforcement of civil (non-criminal) United States antitrust law, antitrust law and the promotion of consumer protection. It ...

, in 1915.

Later proposals

In 2011 and 2013, in response to federal budget-cutting efforts,

United States Senator The United States Senate consists of 100 members, two from each of the 50 U.S. state, states. This list includes all senators serving in the 119th United States Congress. Party affiliation Independent Senators Angus King of Maine and Berni ...

Richard Burr Richard Mauze Burr (born November 30, 1955) is an American businessman and politician who served as a United States senator from North Carolina from 2005 to 2023. A member of the Republican Party, Burr was previously a member of the United Stat ...

( R- N.C.), sponsored , a proposal to re-combine the Department of Commerce and the Department of Labor as the "Department of Commerce and the Workforce." No action on this proposal has been taken beyond referral to committee.

List of secretaries of commerce and labor

; Parties (4)

References

Citations

Bibliography

''From Lighthouses to Laserbeams: A History of the U.S. Department of Commerce''. U.S. Department of Commerce Office of the Secretary, 1995.''Organization and Law of the Department of Commerce and Labor''. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1904."The United States Fish and Wildlife Service: Its Responsibiliies and Functions," Circular 97, United States Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service, Washington, D.C., December 1960

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:United States Department Of Commerce And Labor Commerce and Labor Commerce and Labor Commerce and Labor Government agencies established in 1903 Government agencies disestablished in 1913 1903 establishments in Washington, D.C. 1913 disestablishments in Washington, D.C. Presidency of Theodore Roosevelt Presidency of William Howard Taft