David Rowland Francis
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David Rowland Francis (October 1, 1850January 15, 1927) was an American politician and diplomat. He served in various positions including
Mayor of St. Louis The mayor of St. Louis is the chief executive officer of St. Louis's city government. The mayor has a duty to enforce city ordinances and the power to either approve or veto city ordinances passed by the Board of Aldermen. The current mayo ...
, the 27th Governor of Missouri, and
United States Secretary of the Interior The United States secretary of the interior is the head of the United States Department of the Interior. The secretary and the Department of the Interior are responsible for the management and conservation of most federal land along with natura ...
. He was the
U.S. Ambassador to Russia The ambassador of the United States of America to the Russian Federation is the ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary from the United States of America to the Russian Federation. Since January 30, 2023, Lynne M. Tracy is serving as the ...
between 1916 and 1917, during the
Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution, social change in Russian Empire, Russia, starting in 1917. This period saw Russia Dissolution of the Russian Empire, abolish its mona ...
of 1917. He was a Wilsonian Democrat.


Early life

Francis was born on October 1, 1850, in
Richmond, Kentucky Richmond is a home rule-class city in Madison County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 34,585 as of the 2020 census, making it the state's seventh-largest city. It is the principal city of the Richmond–Berea micropolitan area, wh ...
, the son of Eliza Caldwell (''née'' Rowland) (1830–1898) and John Broaddus Francis (1818–1894). He graduated from
Washington University in St. Louis Washington University in St. Louis (WashU) is a private research university in St. Louis, Missouri, United States. Founded in 1853 by a group of civic leaders and named for George Washington, the university spans 355 acres across its Danforth ...
in 1870 where he was number one on the rolls of the Alpha Iota chapter of
Beta Theta Pi Beta Theta Pi (), commonly known as Beta, is a North American social Fraternities and sororities in North America, fraternity that was founded in 1839 at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. One of North America's oldest fraternities, , it consist ...
fraternity.


Career

After graduating from University, he became a successful businessman in St. Louis and served as the president of a grain merchant's exchange. The St. Louis Mining and Stock Exchange was formed in St. Louis in the fall of 1880 with Francis as a founding member. In 1885, he was elected
mayor of St. Louis The mayor of St. Louis is the chief executive officer of St. Louis's city government. The mayor has a duty to enforce city ordinances and the power to either approve or veto city ordinances passed by the Board of Aldermen. The current mayo ...
as a Democrat. In
1888 Events January * January 3 – The great telescope (with an objective lens of diameter) at Lick Observatory in California is first used. * January 12 – The Schoolhouse Blizzard hits Dakota Territory and the states of Montana, M ...
, he was elected
governor of Missouri A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...
becoming the only mayor of St. Louis elected governor of the state. In 1896, Francis was appointed
United States Secretary of the Interior The United States secretary of the interior is the head of the United States Department of the Interior. The secretary and the Department of the Interior are responsible for the management and conservation of most federal land along with natura ...
by President
Grover Cleveland Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was the 22nd and 24th president of the United States, serving from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. He was the first U.S. president to serve nonconsecutive terms and the first Hist ...
and served until 1897.


World's Fair 1904

Francis was one of the main promoters of the St. Louis World's Fair of 1904, serving as president of the
Louisiana Purchase The Louisiana Purchase () was the acquisition of the Louisiana (New France), territory of Louisiana by the United States from the French First Republic in 1803. This consisted of most of the land in the Mississippi River#Watershed, Mississipp ...
Exposition. Historians generally emphasize the prominence of themes of race and empire, and the Fair's long-lasting impact on intellectuals in the fields of history, art history, architecture and anthropology. From the point of view of the memory of the average person who attended the fair, it primarily promoted entertainment, consumer goods and popular culture. The
1904 Summer Olympics The 1904 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the III Olympiad and also known as St. Louis 1904) were an international multi-sport event held in St. Louis, Missouri, United States, from 1 July to 23 November 1904. Many events were conducted ...
were held in combination with that Exposition, and by overseeing the opening ceremony, Francis became the only American to have opened an Olympic Games without ever serving as president or vice president of the United States.


Later career

In 1905, after being elected president of the Louisiana Purchase Exposition Company, he was sent to Europe by the World's Fair directors to thank kings, emperors, and other rulers for their part in making the exposition a success. He was decorated by the emperors of Germany and Austria and Wilhelmina, the
Queen of the Netherlands The monarchy of the Netherlands is governed by the country's charter and constitution, roughly a third of which explains the mechanics of succession, accession, and abdication; the roles and duties of the monarch; the formalities of communica ...
. In 1910, Francis was arrested for non-payment of taxes, but released on bail.


Diplomatic career

President
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 ...
appointed Francis as the last U.S. Ambassador to the
Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...
between 1916 and 1917. He escaped a communist-organized assassination attempt late in 1916. During Francis's time as ambassador, he was almost appointed as
U.S. Senator The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...
from Missouri. He served in that post during both the social-democratic
February Revolution The February Revolution (), known in Soviet historiography as the February Bourgeois Democratic Revolution and sometimes as the March Revolution or February Coup was the first of Russian Revolution, two revolutions which took place in Russia ...
and communist
October Revolution The October Revolution, also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution (in Historiography in the Soviet Union, Soviet historiography), October coup, Bolshevik coup, or Bolshevik revolution, was the second of Russian Revolution, two r ...
of 1917, and through him the U.S. recognized the brief
Russian Republic The Russian Republic,. referred to as the Russian Democratic Federative Republic in the 1918 Constitution, was a short-lived state which controlled, ''de jure'', the territory of the former Russian Empire after its proclamation by the Rus ...
(and not the subsequent
Bolshevik The Bolsheviks, led by Vladimir Lenin, were a radical Faction (political), faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP) which split with the Mensheviks at the 2nd Congress of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party, ...
regime that seized power in the October Revolution). Francis was the final owner of the St. Louis Republic, a morning newspaper which he sold after years of losses to the rival
St. Louis Globe-Democrat The ''St. Louis Globe-Democrat'' was a daily print newspaper based in St. Louis, Missouri, from 1852 until 1986. The paper began operations on July 1, 1852, as ''The Daily Missouri Democrat'', changing its name to ''The Missouri Democrat'' in 18 ...
in 1919. His biographer, Harper Barnes, summarized his personality:
David R. Francis was a brash, opinionated, stubborn, smart, sometimes foolish, straight-talking, quick-acting, independent-minded, proud,
self-made man A self-made man is a person whose success is of their own making. Benjamin Franklin, one of the Founding Fathers of the United States, has been described as the greatest exemplar of the self-made man. Inspired by Franklin's autobiography, Fr ...
who represented the United States in Russia for two and a half years, during the most tumultuous era in that country's history. Much of his activity has been shrouded in myth – some of that heroic, more of that comic and tragic.


Personal life

On January 20, 1876, he married the former Jane Perry (1854–1924), the daughter of John Dietz Perry (1815–1895) and a granddaughter of James Earickson, the former Missouri State Treasurer. They had six children: John David Perry (1876–1950), David Rowland Jr. (1879–1938), Charles Broaddus (1881–1957), Talton Turner (1882–1955), Thomas (1884–1964), and Sidney Rowland Francis (1888–1960). His wife died in
San Antonio, Texas San Antonio ( ; Spanish for "Anthony of Padua, Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the List of Texas metropolitan areas, third-largest metropolitan area in Texa ...
, on March 21, 1924. Francis died in
St. Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...
,
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 ...
, on January 15, 1927. He was buried in
Bellefontaine Cemetery Bellefontaine Cemetery is a nonprofit, non-denominational cemetery and arboretum in St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1849 as a rural cemetery, Bellefontaine has several architecturally significant monuments and mausoleums such as the Louis Su ...
.


Legacy

In 1895, the
University of Missouri The University of Missouri (Mizzou or MU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri, United States. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Univers ...
dedicated
David R. Francis Quadrangle David R. Francis Quadrangle is the historical center of the University of Missouri in Columbia, Missouri. Known as The Quad, it is the oldest part of Red Campus and adjacent to Downtown Columbia at the south end of the Avenue of the Columns. A ...
in honor of the former governor who is credited with keeping the university in Columbia after the fire of Academic Hall in 1892. Francis insisted that the state's
land-grant university A land-grant university (also called land-grant college or land-grant institution) is an institution of higher education in the United States designated by a state to receive the benefits of the Morrill Land-Grant Acts, Morrill Acts of 1862 and ...
remain in a central location, rather than moving to Sedalia, as many state legislators desired. Instead, Sedalia was awarded the
Missouri State Fair The Missouri State Fair is the state fair for the state of Missouri, which has operated since 1901 in Sedalia, Missouri. It includes daily concerts, exhibits and competitions of animals, homemade crafts, shows, and many food/lemonade stands, an ...
as compensation. A bronze bust of Francis' face sits at the south end of Francis Quad near the steps of
Jesse Hall Jesse Hall, formerly New Academic Hall, is the main administration building for the University of Missouri. Its dome has towered above the south end of David R. Francis Quadrangle since its completion in 1895. In the lawn in front of Jesse Hall ...
. A popular MU student tradition is to rub Governor Francis' nose before taking a test in order to get an A. The track/soccer/football stadium at
Washington University in St. Louis Washington University in St. Louis (WashU) is a private research university in St. Louis, Missouri, United States. Founded in 1853 by a group of civic leaders and named for George Washington, the university spans 355 acres across its Danforth ...
, as well as the adjacent gymnasium, are named in Francis' honor. Francis Field was the site of the
1904 Summer Olympics The 1904 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the III Olympiad and also known as St. Louis 1904) were an international multi-sport event held in St. Louis, Missouri, United States, from 1 July to 23 November 1904. Many events were conducted ...
; Francis attended the opening ceremony and officially opened the games as the representative for the host nation. In 1916, he gave of land to the city of
St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Miss ...
, as a
Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a Religion, religious and Culture, cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by coun ...
gift. It was turned into a park that bears his name.http://stlouis.missouri.org/citygov/parks/parks_div/Francis.html In recognition of his donation of the land, a memorial statue of Francis was installed in Francis Park in the city of St. Louis, Missouri in August 2018. Francis Park is located within the neighborhood of St. Louis Hills. The bronze sculpture of David R. Francis is the work of American artist and sculptor, Harry Weber. The memorial is supported by the group
Friends of Francis Park


References

Notes Sources * * * Francis, David Rowland. ''The universal exposition of 1904.'' (Louisiana purchase exposition Company, 1913)
online
* Francis, David Rowland. ''Russia from the American Embassy, April, 1916-November, 1918'' (C. Scribner's Sons, 1921). * Francis, David Rowland, and Jamie H. Cockfield. (1981). ''Dollars and diplomacy: Ambassador David Rowland Francis and the fall of tsarism, 1916–17'' (Durham: Duke University Press). * Francis, David Rowland, Robert Chadwell Williams, and Robert Lester. (1986). ''Russia in transition: the diplomatic papers of David R. Francis, U.S. Ambassador to Russia, 1916–1918'' (Frederick, Md: University Publications of America).


Further reading

* Barnes, Harper. (2001). ''Standing on a volcano: the life and times of David Rowland Francis'' (St. Louis: Missouri Historical Society Press in association with the Francis Press. ).


External links


David R. Francis
at St. Louis Public Library: St. Louis Mayors.

by Harper Barnes, October 2001. . * Missouri State Archives
David Rowland Francis, 1889-1893
, - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Francis, David R. 1850 births 1927 deaths People from Richmond, Kentucky Washington University in St. Louis alumni Mayors of St. Louis Democratic Party governors of Missouri United States secretaries of the interior Ambassadors of the United States to Russia Presidents of the Organising Committees for the Olympic Games Cleveland administration cabinet members 19th-century mayors of places in Missouri 19th-century Missouri politicians Burials at Bellefontaine Cemetery