John Ridgeley Carter (November 28, 1864 – June 4, 1944) was an American attorney, diplomat, and banker.

Early life

Carter was born on November 28, 1864, in

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the List of United States ...

. He was one of fourteen children born to Mary Buckner (

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Ridgely) Carter and Bernard Carter, a prominent lawyer and professor. Through his father, he was a member of the prominent Carter and Lee families of Virginia and was a descendant of

Henry Lee III Henry Lee III (January 29, 1756 – March 25, 1818) was an early American Patriot (American Revolution), Patriot and politician who served as the ninth Governor of Virginia and as the Virginia United States House of Representatives, Representa ...

, the 9th

Governor of Virginia The governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia is the head of government of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia. The Governor (United States), governor is head of the Government_of_Virginia#Executive_branch, executive branch ...

. His paternal grandparents were Charles Henry Carter and Rosalie Eugenia (née Calvert) Carter (a daughter of

George Calvert George Calvert, 1st Baron Baltimore (; 1580 – 15 April 1632) was an English politician. He achieved domestic political success as a member of parliament and later Secretary of State (England), Secretary of State under James VI and I, King Ja ...

and

Rosalie Stier Calvert Rosalie-Eugénie Stier Calvert (February 16, 1778 – March 13, 1821) was a plantation owner and correspondent in nineteenth century Maryland. A collection of her letters, titled ''Mistress of Riversdale, The Plantation Letters of Rosalie St ...

), a descendant of

George Calvert, 1st Baron Baltimore George Calvert, 1st Baron Baltimore (; 1580 – 15 April 1632) was an English politician. He achieved domestic political success as a member of parliament and later Secretary of State under King James I. He lost much of his political power a ...

the first colonial proprietor of the

Province of Maryland The Province of Maryland was an Kingdom of England, English and later British colonization of the Americas, British colony in North America from 1634 until 1776, when the province was one of the Thirteen Colonies that joined in supporting the A ...

. His paternal aunt, Alice Carter, was married to

Oden Bowie Oden Bowie (November 10, 1826December 4, 1894), a member of the United States Democratic Party, was the 34th governor of the State of Maryland in the United States from 1869 to 1872. Childhood He was born in 1826 at Fairview Plantation in Col ...

, 34th

Governor of Maryland The governor of the State of Maryland is the head of government of Maryland, and is the commander-in-chief of the state's National Guard units. The governor is the highest-ranking official in the state and has a broad range of appointive powers ...

. Carter received his undergraduate degree in 1883 from

Trinity College Trinity College may refer to: Australia * Trinity Anglican College, an Anglican coeducational primary and secondary school in , New South Wales * Trinity Catholic College, Auburn, a coeducational school in the inner-western suburbs of Sydney, New ...

Hartford Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...

, followed by an M.A. degree there in 1885. After graduate work 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 ...

, a law degree from

Maryland University The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the Universi ...

in 1887, and another from

Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, Harvard Law School is the oldest law school in continuous operation in the United ...

in 1888, he was admitted to the Maryland bar in 1889.

Career

In 1894, Carter accepted his first diplomatic appointment as secretary to Thomas F. Bayard, the U.S. Ambassador in London. He was made second secretary in 1896 and ''

Chargé d'affaires A (), plural ''chargés d'affaires'', often shortened to ''chargé'' (French) and sometimes in colloquial English to ''charge-D'', is a diplomat who serves as an embassy's chief of mission in the absence of the ambassador. The term is Frenc ...

'' in 1897. He served under Ambassadors

John Hay John Milton Hay (October 8, 1838July 1, 1905) was an American statesman and official whose career in government stretched over almost half a century. Beginning as a Secretary to the President of the United States, private secretary for Abraha ...

Joseph Hodges Choate Joseph Hodges Choate (January 24, 1832 – May 14, 1917) was an American lawyer and diplomat. He was chairman of the American delegation at the Second Hague Conference, and ambassador to the United Kingdom. Choate was associated with many of t ...

until 1905, when he was appointed Secretary of the

American Embassy in London The Embassy of the United States of America in London is the diplomatic mission of the United States in the United Kingdom. Its office is located in Nine Elms and is the largest American embassy in Western Europe and the focal point for events ...

under Ambassador

Whitelaw Reid Whitelaw Reid (October 27, 1837 – December 15, 1912) was an American politician, diplomat and newspaper editor, as well as the author of ''Ohio in the War'', a popular work of history. After assisting Horace Greeley as editor of the ''New-Yo ...

, remaining in that role until 1909. On September 25, 1909, he was appointed as U.S. Minister at

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ) is the capital and largest city of Romania. The metropolis stands on the River Dâmbovița (river), Dâmbovița in south-eastern Romania. Its population is officially estimated at 1.76 million residents within a greater Buc ...

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

. He presented his credentials on November 14, 1909, and served until October 24, 1911. While Minister to Romania, he concurrently served as the U.S. Minister to Serbia and

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

(appointed as diplomatic agent on September 25, 1909, followed by U.S. Minister on June 24, 1910, although he never presented his credentials). In 1911, he was offered the post of U.S. Minister to Argentina, but refused it because it came without a house to live in. Carter felt that without such accommodation, the post would be too expensive for him on his annual salary of $12,000. It was estimated that Charles H. Sherrill, the minister he was intended to replace (and under whom

Robert Woods Bliss Robert Woods Bliss (August 5, 1875 – April 19, 1962) was an American diplomat, art collector, philanthropist, and one of the co-founders of the Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection in Washington, D.C. Early life and education Bliss ...

served as secretary of the legation in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

), spent $100,000 yearly to maintain his position.

Later career

After Carter left the diplomatic service, he joined Morgan, Harjes & Co. in Paris in 1912, where he lived for twenty-five years, becoming a partner in 1914. With the firm, he traveled to

Santiago, Chile Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Regi ...

to represent American stockholders of the Chilean-Argentine railway.4 Following the death of

Henry Herman Harjes Henry Herman Harjes (20 February 1875 – 20 August 1926) was a French born American polo player and banker with Morgan, Harjes & Co. Early life Harjes was born on 20 February 1875 in Paris, France. He was a son of John Henry Harjes (1829–1914 ...

in 1926, he was the senior partner of the firm, which was renamed Morgan & Cie. Due to his efforts during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, France made him a

Grand Officer of the Légion d'honneur Grand may refer to: People with the name * Grand (surname) * Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor Places * Grand, Oklahoma, USA * Grand, Vosges, village and commune in France with Gallo-Roman amphitheatre * Grand County (disambiguation), ...

. After the German invasion of France in 1940, Carter returned to New York in October 1940, where they lived until his death in 1944.

Personal life

In 1887, Carter was married to Alice Morgan (1865–1933) in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

Alice, one of seven children born to Carolyn (née Fellowes) Morgan and banker David Pierce Morgan, was the sister of William Fellowes Morgan Sr. Together, they were the parents of: * Caroline Mildred Carter (1888–1965), who married Archibald, Viscount Acheson (later the 5th

Earl of Gosford Earl of Gosford is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1806 for Arthur Acheson, 2nd Viscount Gosford. The Acheson family descends from the Scottish statesman Sir Archibald Acheson, 1st Baronet of Edinburgh, who later settled ...

), in 1910. * Bernard Shirley Carter (1893–1961), a prominent banker with Morgan, Harjes & Co. who married Louise Hope Thacher. He was a member of both the

Knickerbocker Club The Knickerbocker Club (known informally as The Knick) is a gentlemen's club in New York City that was founded in 1871. It is considered to be the most exclusive club in the United States and one of the most Aristocracy (class), aristocratic gent ...

in New York and the

Metropolitan Club Metropolitan Club may refer to: *Metropolitan Club (New York City), a private social club in Manhattan, New York, United States * Metropolitan Club (San Francisco), a women's club in San Francisco, California, United States * Metropolitan Club (Was ...

His wife died at their home in

Senlis Senlis () is a commune in the northern French department of Oise, Hauts-de-France. The monarchs of the early French dynasties lived in Senlis, attracted by the proximity of the Chantilly forest. It is known for its Gothic cathedral and other ...

, near Paris in 1933. Carter died on June 4, 1944, at the Knickerbocker Club, his residence in New York City. His funeral was held at St. Bartholomew's Church on

Park Avenue Park Avenue is a boulevard in New York City that carries north and southbound traffic in the borough (New York City), boroughs of Manhattan and the Bronx. For most of the road's length in Manhattan, it runs parallel to Madison Avenue to the wes ...

Legacy

Carter was painted by prominent American artist

John Singer Sargent John Singer Sargent (; January 12, 1856 – April 15, 1925) was an American expatriate artist, considered the "leading portrait painter of his generation" for his evocations of Edwardian era, Edwardian-era luxury. He created roughly 900 oil ...

in 1901. In May 1908, Sargent also painted a portrait of his daughter Mildred in London that was described at the time by ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' as "in the painter's best manner and brings out all of the innate sweetness of nature which has endeared Miss Carter to her English as much as to her American friends, all of whom agree that she has the wonderful tact and urbanity of her father." In 2007, the portrait of John R. Carter sold at

Sotheby's Sotheby's ( ) is a British-founded multinational corporation with headquarters in New York City. It is one of the world's largest brokers of fine art, fine and decorative art, jewellery, and collectibles. It has 80 locations in 40 countries, an ...

for $1,833,000.

References

External links

John Ridgely Carter
at the

National Portrait Gallery (United States) The National Portrait Gallery (NPG) is an art museum in Washington, D.C., United States. Founded in 1962 and opened in 1968, it is part of the Smithsonian Institution. Its collections focus on images of American artists, politicians, scientists ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Carter, John R. 1864 births 1944 deaths Leipzig University alumni University System of Maryland alumni Trinity College (Connecticut) alumni Harvard Law School alumni American lawyers Ambassadors of the United States to Romania Ambassadors of the United States to Bulgaria Ambassadors of the United States to Serbia American bankers Ridgely family 20th-century American diplomats