George W. Wickersham
Encyclopedia
George Woodward Wickersham (September 19, 1858 – January 25, 1936) was an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 lawyer and Presidential Cabinet Secretary.

Biography

Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...

, he graduated from the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...

. In 1883 Wickersham entered the old established law firm of Strong and Cadwalader
Cadwalader, Wickersham and Taft
Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP is the oldest continuously-operated law firm in the United States. Established in New York City in 1792, Cadwalader opened offices around the world...

, and became a partner four years later.

He held the office of Attorney General of the United States from 1909 to 1913, in the administration of President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....

 William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft was the 27th President of the United States and later the tenth Chief Justice of the United States...

. From 1914 to 1916, Wickersham served as president of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York
Association of the Bar of the City of New York
The New York City Bar Association , founded in 1870, is a voluntary association of lawyers and law students. Since 1896, the organization, formally known as the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, has been headquartered in a landmark building on 44th Street, between Fifth and Sixth...

.

Wickersham was named by Woodrow Wilson
Woodrow Wilson
Thomas Woodrow Wilson was the 28th President of the United States, from 1913 to 1921. A leader of the Progressive Movement, he served as President of Princeton University from 1902 to 1910, and then as the Governor of New Jersey from 1911 to 1913...

 to serve on the War Trade Board to Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...

 soon after the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 entered World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

. In 1929, Herbert Hoover
Herbert Hoover
Herbert Clark Hoover was the 31st President of the United States . Hoover was originally a professional mining engineer and author. As the United States Secretary of Commerce in the 1920s under Presidents Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge, he promoted partnerships between government and business...

 named him to the National Commission on Law Observance and Enforcement, the so- called Wickersham Commission
Wickersham Commission
U.S. President Herbert Hoover established the Wickersham Commission, officially called the National Commission on Law Observance and Enforcement, on May 20th, 1929. Former Attorney General George W...

.

Wickersham was President of the Council on Foreign Relations
Council on Foreign Relations
The Council on Foreign Relations is an American nonprofit nonpartisan membership organization, publisher, and think tank specializing in U.S. foreign policy and international affairs...

 from 1933-1936.

Wickersham died in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

 in 1936, and was interred in Brookside Cemetery
Brookside Cemetery, Englewood
-History:It was started in May 1876, by a group of Englewood residents who purchased of land for a cemetery. The property sits on the East side of Engle Street adjacent to Tenafly, New Jersey. The cemetery was named for the brook running beside its eastern boundary. A chapel built with the local...

 in Englewood, New Jersey
Englewood, New Jersey
Englewood is a city located in Bergen County, New Jersey. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city had a total population of 27,147.Englewood was incorporated as a city by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 17, 1899, from portions of Ridgefield Township and the remaining portions of...

.

Legacy

Since 1996, the Friends of the Law Library of the Library of Congress have presented an annual award named for Wickersham.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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