Robert Elliott Freer (January 30, 1896 – January 6, 1963) was an

Ohio Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...

attorney who served as chair of the Federal Trade Commission from January 1, 1939, to December 31, 1939, again from January 1, 1944, to December 31, 1944, and a third time from January 1, 1948, to December 31, 1948.

Early life and education

Freer was orn in

Madisonville, Cincinnati Madisonville is a neighborhood in Cincinnati, Ohio. The population was 9,141 at the 2010 census. History Madisonville was established in 1809 and originally named Madison after the newly elected James Madison, the fourth president of the United S ...

. He received an

LL.B. Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

from the

University of Cincinnati College of Law The University of Cincinnati College of Law was founded in 1833 as the Cincinnati Law School. It is the fourth oldest continuously running law school in the United States — after Harvard, the University of Virginia, and Yale — and the first in ...

in 1917. He received an

LL.M. A Master of Laws (M.L. or LL.M.; Latin: ' or ') is an advanced postgraduate academic degree, pursued by those either holding an undergraduate academic law degree, a professional law degree, or an undergraduate degree in a related subject. In mos ...

from the

Washington College of Law The American University Washington College of Law (AUWCL or WCL) is the law school of American University, a private research university in Washington, D.C. It is located on the western side of Tenley Circle in the Tenleytown section of no ...

in 1929.

Career

He entered the practice of law in Cincinnati in 1917. He served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

in the 324th Infantry Regiment, and was deployed to

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...

. In 1925, he became an attorney with the Bureau of Valuation within the

Interstate Commerce Commission The Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) was a regulatory agency in the United States created by the Interstate Commerce Act of 1887. The agency's original purpose was to regulate railroads (and later trucking) to ensure fair rates, to elimina ...

.In 1935, President

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

appointed Freer as a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or again ...

member of the FTC. Freer was reappointed to the FTC by President

Harry S. Truman Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. A leader of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 34th vice president from January to April 1945 under Franklin ...

in 1948, but resigned later that year to return to the practice of law. In 1960, Freer returned to government service as a hearing examiner for the Federal Power Commission

Honors

* 1928: Elected membership by his alma mater,

, to the

Order of the Coif The Order of the Coif is an honor society for United States law school graduates. The name is a reference to the ancient English order of advocates, the serjeants-at-law, whose courtroom attire included a coif—a white lawn or silk skullcap ...

Personal life and death

Freer married three times, first – on October 28, 1919, in

Newport, Kentucky Newport is a home rule-class city at the confluence of the Ohio and Licking rivers in Campbell County, Kentucky. The population was 15,273 at the 2010 census. Historically, it was one of four county seats of Campbell County. Newport is a major ...

– to Hazel Louise Davis (''maiden''; 1898–1975). He then married – on 11 Apr 1925, in

Marion County, Ohio Marion County is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 65,359. Its county seat is Marion. The county was created in 1820 and later organized in 1824. It is named for General Francis "The Swam ...

– Olive Roberts (''maiden''; 1898–1973). Freer then married – on September 7, 1939, in

McConnellsburg, Pennsylvania McConnellsburg is a borough in Fulton County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 1,150 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Fulton County. History The McConnellsburg Historic District was recognized by the United States Depar ...

– Alice Elizabeth Barry (''maiden''; 1905–1979), and adopted her two daughters and one son from her prior marriage to Harold Wadsworth Sullivan (1896–1969), former Assistant Attorney General for Massachusetts. Together, he and Alice had a son. Alice's father,

Edward P. Barry Edward P. Barry (November 28, 1864 – September 2, 1936) was an American politician who served as the 44th Lieutenant Governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and ...

, had been

Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts The lieutenant governor of Massachusetts is the first in the line to discharge the powers and duties of the office of governor following the incapacitation of the Governor of Massachusetts. The constitutional honorific title for the office is His ...

. with whom he had two sons and two daughters. Alice, in 1933, earned a law degree from the

Portia Law School New England Law , Boston (formerly New England School of Law) is a Private university, private law school in Boston, Massachusetts. It was founded as Portia School of Law in 1908 and is located in downtown Boston near the Massachusetts Supreme ...

in Boston. Freer died of

multiple myeloma Multiple myeloma (MM), also known as plasma cell myeloma and simply myeloma, is a cancer of plasma cells, a type of white blood cell that normally produces antibodies. Often, no symptoms are noticed initially. As it progresses, bone pain, ane ...

at the age of 66, and was interred at

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is one of two national cemeteries run by the United States Army. Nearly 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington, Virginia. There are about 30 funerals conducted on weekdays and 7 held on Sa ...

Bibliography

Notes

References

* ; . * * * * . * ; ; . * ; . * 1896 births 1963 deaths Lawyers from Cincinnati University of Cincinnati College of Law alumni Washington College of Law alumni Federal Trade Commission personnel Deaths from multiple myeloma in the United States {{US-gov-bio-stub