Robert Sanderson McCormick explained

Robert Sanderson McCormick (July 26, 1849 – April 16, 1919) was an American diplomat. Born in rural Virginia, he was part of the extended McCormick family that became influential in Chicago.

Early life

McCormick was born July 26, 1849, on the family plantation known as Walnut Grove in Rockbridge County, Virginia.^[1] His father was William Sanderson McCormick (1815–1865) and his mother was Mary Ann (née Grigsby) McCormick (1828–1878), whose family owned the Hickory Hill plantation.

When Robert was an infant, his family moved to Chicago to join the McCormick family agricultural machinery business, which became known as International Harvester. He attended prep school at the University of Chicago and went to college at the University of Virginia.

Career

McCormick formed a partnership with his paternal cousin Hugh Leander Adams,^[2] which they named McCormick & Adams, to invest in a grain elevator at St. Louis, Missouri, in 1876. In the continuing national economic troubles in the aftermath of the panic of 1873, the enterprise failed.^[3]

Diplomatic career

Politically active and a major donor to the Republican Party, in 1889 McCormick was appointed as Second Secretary of the American Legation in London, where he served from 1889 to 1892, under Minister Robert Todd Lincoln, eldest son of the late President Abraham Lincoln and his wife. That led to his appointment as official representative for the Chicago 1893 Exhibition.

His diplomatic career took off when President William McKinley appointed him as U.S. Minister to Austria-Hungary on March 7, 1901. McCormick presented his credentials on April 29, 1901, and served through McKinley's assassination at the Pan-American Exposition on September 14, 1901. McCormick continued in the role during Theodore Roosevelt's term and when the relationship between the two countries was upgraded, he was promoted, becoming the first American ambassador to Austria-Hungary on May 27, 1902, and served in that role until December 29, 1902.^[4]

On September 26, 1902, Roosevelt appointed him to St. Petersburg to serve as United States Ambassador to Imperial Russia.^[5] He was commissioned during a recess of the Senate and recommissioned on December 8, 1902, after confirmation. McCormick presented his credentials on January 12, 1903, and was present in St Petersburg during the Bloody Sunday protests of that year. After reaching appointment as U.S. Ambassador to France on March 8, 1905, he presented his recall on March 27, 1905.

He presented his credentials in Paris on May 2, 1905, and replaced Horace Porter. McCormick served for almost two years, retiring from the diplomatic services in 1907 when his health started to decline. He presented his recall on March 2, 1907, and was replaced by Henry White, who had been the Ambassador to Italy.^[6]

Personal life

On June 8, 1876, he married Katherine van Etta "Kate" Medill (1853–1932). She was a daughter of Joseph Medill (1823–1899), who owned and managed the Chicago Tribune newspaper, and his wife. Together, the McCormicks were the parents of three children:^[1]

• Joseph Medill McCormick (1877–1925), who was elected as a U.S. Senator from Illinois. He married Ruth Hanna, daughter of US Senator Mark Hanna (D-OH).
• Katrina McCormick (1879–1879), who died in infancy.
• Robert Rutherford McCormick (1880–1955), who became the influential editor of the Chicago Tribune.

McCormick died from pneumonia on April 16, 1919, at his home in Hinsdale, Illinois.^[7] He was buried in Graceland Cemetery.

Awards

• In 1907, Emperor Nicholas II of Russia conferred on him the Order of St. Alexander Nevsky, in recognition of his services to Russia during the war with Japan.
• The Japanese decorated him with the first class of the Order of the Rising Sun, for his attention to Japan's interest during the Russo-Japanese War. He was credited with negotiating with Russia to allow Jews to emigrate using US passports, as suggested by Chicago Rabbi Emil G. Hirsch.^[7]
• The French government conferred on him the Grand Cordon of the Legion of Honor, for furthering the relations between France and the United States.

Notes and References

1. Book: Family record and biography . Leander James McCormick . Leander James McCormick . 1896 . 308 . L.J. McCormick . 9780608317670 .
2. a son of Hugh Adams, who married Amanda McCormick. She was the youngest sister of his father William Sanderson McCormick.
3. Book: Richard Norton Smith . Richard Norton Smith . The Colonel: The Life and Legend of Robert R. McCormick, 1880–1955 . . 2003 . 23–25 . 978-0-8101-2039-6 .
4. Web site: Former U.S. Ambassadors to Austria . U.S. Embassy in Vienna . December 29, 2010 .
5. Latest Intelligence - American diplomatic appointments. 27 September 1902 . 5 . 36884.
6. Web site: Robert Sanderson McCormick - People - Department History - Office of the Historian . history.state.gov . . 5 May 2019.
7. News: R.S. M'Cormick, Ex-Diplomat, Dies; Father of Illinois Senator and of Chicago Tribune Editor a Pneumonia Victim . April 17, 1919 . 11 . . January 1, 2011 .