Joseph Edward Willard (May 1, 1865 – April 4, 1924) was an American politician, philanthropist, and diplomat.

Early life

The son of prominent Washington

hotelier A hotel manager, hotelier, or lodging manager is a person who manages the operation of a hotel, motel, resort, or other lodging-related establishment. Management of a hotel operation includes, but is not limited to: management of hotel staff, b ...

and Union Army commissary major Joseph Clapp Willard (1820–1897) and former Confederate spy

Antonia Ford Antonia Ford Willard (July 23, 1838 – February 14, 1871) was a volunteer civilian spy for the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. Early life Antonia Ford was born at Fairfax, Virginia, Fairfax Court House, Virginia. She was ...

, Joseph Willard had two brothers who died in infancy.

Career

Willard served for eight years in the

Virginia House of Delegates The Virginia House of Delegates is one of the two houses of the Virginia General Assembly, the other being the Senate of Virginia. It has 100 members elected for terms of two years; unlike most states, these elections take place during odd-numbe ...

, prior to his election as the 19th

Lieutenant Governor of Virginia The lieutenant governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia is a constitutional officer of the Commonwealth of Virginia. The lieutenant governor is elected every four years along with the governor and attorney general. The office is currently held ...

. He held that office from 1902 through 1906, leaving after an unsuccessful run for

governor 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 ...

. The Virginia General Assembly then elected him a commissioner of the relatively new

Virginia State Corporation Commission The State Corporation Commission, or SCC, is a Virginia (USA) regulatory agency whose authority encompasses utilities, insurance, state-chartered financial institutions, securities, retail franchising, and railroads. It is the state's central fili ...

, where he served for four years. In 1913, 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 Willard as the

United States Ambassador to Spain The most recent ambassador was Julissa Reynoso Pantaleón, she was sworn in by United States Vice President, Vice President Kamala Harris on January 7, 2022, and presented her credentials on February 2, 2022. This is a list of Ambassadors of t ...

. Upon the outbreak of

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 ...

Willard was vacationing in the United States and returned to Europe aboard the , although his daughter, Belle, was sick with typhoid fever (she would recover). Ambassador Willard held his position under successive presidents of both political parties until shortly before his death.

Personal life

Willard and his wife, Belle Layton Wyatt (1869–1954), had two daughters, Belle Wyatt, (1892–1968) who later married

Kermit Roosevelt Kermit Roosevelt Sr. Military Cross, MC (October 10, 1889 – June 4, 1943) was an American businessman, soldier, explorer, and writer. A son of Theodore Roosevelt, the List of Presidents of the United States, 26th President of the United State ...

on June 10, 1914, and Mary Elizabeth, (1898-1979) who later married The Hon.

Mervyn Herbert The Honourable Mervyn Robert Howard Molyneux Herbert (27 December 1882 – 26 May 1929) of Tetton, Kingston St Mary in Somerset, was a career diplomat and a first-class cricket player. Origins Herbert was born at Highclere Castle in Hampshire ...

, third son of

4th Earl of Carnarvon Fourth or the fourth may refer to: * the ordinal form of the number 4 * ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971 * Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision * Fourth (music), a musical interval * ''The Fourth'', a 1972 Soviet drama ...

, in 1921. His daughter, Belle, and Roosevelt had four children: #

Kermit Roosevelt Jr. Kermit "Kim" Roosevelt Jr. (February 16, 1916 – June 8, 2000) was an American intelligence officer who served in the Office of Strategic Services during and following World War II. A grandson of Theodore Roosevelt, the 26th President of the U ...

(1916-2000); married Mary Lowe Gaddis (1917-2013) and had four children. #

Joseph Willard Roosevelt Joseph Willard Roosevelt (January 16, 1918 – May 18, 2008) was an American pianist and composer. Early life Roosevelt was born on January 16, 1918 as the second son of Kermit Roosevelt and Belle Wyatt Willard. He was named for his grandfather, ...

(1918-2008); married (1) Nancy Thayer/Cummings, daughter of poet

E.E. Cummings Edward Estlin Cummings (October 14, 1894 – September 3, 1962), commonly known as e e cummings or E. E. Cummings, was an American poet, painter, essayist, author, and playwright. During World War I, he worked as an ambulance driver and was ...

and had two children; married (2) Carole Adele Russell and had three children. # Belle Wyatt Roosevelt (1919-1985); married John Gorham Palfrey Jr., grandson of

John G. Palfrey John Gorham Palfrey (May 2, 1796 – April 26, 1881) was an American clergyman and historian who served as a U.S. Representative from Massachusetts. A Unitarian minister, he played a leading role in the early history of Harvard Divinity Scho ...

, 2nd great-grandson of

William Palfrey William Palfrey (1741–1780) was an American Patriot. Early life William Palfrey was born February 24, 1741, in Boston, Massachusetts. Freemasonry In 1769, Palfrey was Substitute Master of the Lodge of St Andrew, a masonic lodge warranted b ...

, and grand-nephew of

Francis Winthrop Palfrey Francis Winthrop Palfrey (1831–1889) was an American history, historian and Civil War officer. Early life Palfrey was born in Boston, Massachusetts on April 11, 1831, the son of John Gorham Palfrey, John G. Palfrey (1796-1881) and Mary Ann (ne ...

; had three children. # Dirck Roosevelt (1925-1953) Willard had at least 12 grandchildren, including

Mark Roosevelt Mark Roosevelt (born December 10, 1955) is an American academic administrator and politician who served as the seventh president of the Santa Fe campus of St. John's College. He was the President of Antioch College from January 2011 to December ...

; his great-grandchildren include

Kermit Roosevelt III Kermit Roosevelt III (born July 14, 1971) is an American author, lawyer, and David Berger Professor for the Administration of Justice at the University of Pennsylvania Law School. He is a great-great-grandson of U.S. President Theodore Roose ...

John Palfrey John Gorham Palfrey VII (born 1972) is an American educator, scholar, and law professor. His areas of focus include emerging media, Internet censorship, Internet freedom, online Transparency (social), transparency and accountability, and child sa ...

and

Quentin Palfrey Quentin Palfrey (born April 29, 1974) is an American lawyer, policymaker, and politician. He currently serves as Director of Federal Funds and Infrastructure in the Massachusetts Executive Office for Administration and Finance. He previously ser ...

Death

Joseph Willard tomb - Amphitheater section - Oak Hill Cemetery - 2013-09-04

Willard died in

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

, New York, on April 4, 1924. His remains were returned to Washington, D.C., for burial at Oak Hill cemetery.

Sources

Willard Family Papers

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 o ...

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Willard, Joseph Edward 1865 births 1924 deaths Democratic Party members of the Virginia House of Delegates Lieutenant governors of Virginia Ambassadors of the United States to Spain Virginia Military Institute alumni Virginia lawyers 19th-century American lawyers 20th-century American lawyers Politicians from Washington, D.C. 20th-century American diplomats Burials at Oak Hill Cemetery (Washington, D.C.) 19th-century members of the Virginia General Assembly 20th-century members of the Virginia General Assembly