Donald Snow Knowlton (November 22, 1892 – July 27, 1976) was an American

public relations Public relations (PR) is the practice of managing and disseminating information from an individual or an organization (such as a business, government agency, or a nonprofit organization) to the public in order to influence their perception. Pu ...

executive. He co-founded Hill and Knowlton with John W. Hill.Miller, Karen S. (1999). ''The Voice of Business: Hill & Knowlton and Postwar Public Relations.''

University of North Carolina Press The University of North Carolina Press (or UNC Press), founded in 1922, is a not-for-profit university press associated with the University of North Carolina. It was the first university press founded in the southern United States. It is a mem ...

Life and career

Knowlton was born in

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–United States border, Canada–U.S. maritime border ...

. He graduated from Lincoln-West High School and

Western Reserve University Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US * Western, New York, a town in the US * Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia * Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that ...

. He became advertising manager at Union Trust Co., including managing the bank-owned radio station WJAX. He authored the 1926 book ''These Bankers'' during that time. Union Trust closed during the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

, so Knowlton joined Hill in the new venture. In 1946, Hill and Knowlton dissolved their partnership, and Knowlton took over the direction of Hill & Knowlton Cleveland, which closed shortly after Knowlton's retirement in 1962.Knowlton, Donald Snow
via The Encyclopedia of Cleveland History Knowlton also maintained an interest in music. His mother, Fanny Snow Knowlton, was a composer. He was a

banjoist This article comprises two separate lists. The first consists of primary banjo players and the second of celebrities that also play the banjo. Primary banjo players A listing of notable musicians who play the banjo as a major part of their ...

in a

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

band as an adult. Knowlton wrote one of the first serious discussions of jazz as an American art form in a 1926 article for ''

Harper's ''Harper's Magazine'' is a monthly magazine of literature, politics, culture, finance, and the arts. Launched in New York City in June 1850, it is the oldest continuously published monthly magazine in the United States. ''Harper's Magazine'' has ...

'', entitled "The Anatomy of Jazz."Lopes, Paul (2002). ''The Rise of a Jazz Art World.''

Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press was the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted a letters patent by King Henry VIII in 1534, it was the oldest university press in the world. Cambridge University Press merged with Cambridge Assessme ...

, Knowlton, Don (April 1926). "The Anatomy of Jazz," ''

Selected publications

*''Profit and Loss'' (1944) *''Brick House Stories'' (1936) *''Advertising for Banks'' (1932) *''Cooperation in Public Relations'' (1931) *''These Bankers'' (1926)

References

External links

Donald Snow Knowlton
via The Encyclopedia of Cleveland History at

Case Western Reserve University Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) is a Private university, private research university in Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It was established in 1967 by a merger between Western Reserve University and the Case Institute of Technology. Case ...

John W. Hill (r) and Don S. Knowlton, of the public relations firm of Hill & Knowlton, giving testimony before the Senate Civil Liberties Committee on steel company public relations campaign
via

United States Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers copyright law ...

1892 births 1976 deaths Public relations pioneers 20th-century American businesspeople Businesspeople from Cleveland {{US-business-bio-1890s-stub