Royal Meeker (February 23, 1873 – August 16, 1953) was a progressive American economist, born at Quaker Lake, Susquehanna County,

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

. He graduated from Iowa State College in 1898, then studied with E.R.A. Seligman at Columbia (Ph.D., 1906) and for a year at the

University of Leipzig Leipzig University (), in Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, is one of the world's oldest universities and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. The university was founded on 2 December 1409 by Frederick I, Electo ...

(1903–1904). His dissertation was entitled ''History of Shipping Subsidies'' (1905). From 1906 to 1913, Meeker was a professor of history, economics, and political science at Ursinus College, Collegeville, Pennsylvania and a preceptor and professor of economics at Princeton. He knew

Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was the 28th president of the United States, serving from 1913 to 1921. He was the only History of the Democratic Party (United States), Democrat to serve as president during the Prog ...

, then the president of Princeton, and they served together on New Jersey political boards. Both were associated with the Progressive movement for an active role for government. President Wilson appointed Meeker Commissioner of Labor Statistics in 1913. As the commissioner 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 ...

, Meeker managed special economic studies during World War I and began its regular publication, the ''

Monthly Labor Review The ''Monthly Labor Review'' (''MLR'') is published by the U.S. 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 o ...

'', in 1915. In 1916 he was elected as a

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of the American Statistical Association. In 1919-1920 he served as a member of the Federal Electric Railways Commission. Meeker resigned from the administration in June 1920 to take up the opportunity to help organize the new

International Labour Organization The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a United Nations agency whose mandate is to advance social and economic justice by setting international labour standards. Founded in October 1919 under the League of Nations, it is one of the firs ...

, where he was the Chief of the Scientific Division from 1920 to 1923. Meeker served as Pennsylvania Secretary of Labor and Industry from 1923 to 1924, and later joined the faculty of

Carleton College Carleton College ( ) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Northfield, Minnesota, United States. Founded in 1866, the main campus is between Northfield and the approximately Carleton ...

(1926–1927) and

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

(1930–1936, perhaps longer). He was Director of Research of the Connecticut Department of Labor (1941–1946). He died in

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound. With a population of 135,081 as determined by the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, New Haven is List ...

in 1953. Meeker advocated progressive reforms, including a minimum wage, national health insurance, child labor restrictions combined with strong, State-controlled schools, workmen's compensation, and a nationwide system of public employment offices.http://www.bls.gov/bls/history/commissioners/meeker.htm.

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Meeker, Royal Columbia University alumni 1873 births 1953 deaths American economists American historians American statisticians Princeton University faculty Yale University faculty Bureau of Labor Statistics Fellows of the American Statistical Association Woodrow Wilson administration personnel