Robert Roberts Hitt (January 16, 1834 – September 20, 1906) was an American diplomat and Republican politician from

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

. He served briefly as assistant secretary of state in the short-lived administration of James A. Garfield but resigned alongside Secretary of State James G. Blaine after Garfield's assassination in 1881. He returned to Washington to represent Northwestern Illinois in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

from 1882 to his death. After 1885, he was the senior Republican on the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, which he chaired from 1889 to 1891 and 1895 until his death in 1906.

Early life

He was born in

Urbana, Ohio Urbana is a city in Champaign County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is located about northeast of Dayton, Ohio, Dayton and west of Columbus, Ohio, Columbus. The population was 11,115 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. ...

, to Reverend Thomas Smith Hitt and Emily John Hitt. He and his parents moved to Mount Morris,

in 1837. He was educated at Rock River Seminary and De Pauw University.HITT, Robert Roberts
in ''

Who's Who in America Marquis Who's Who, also known as A.N. Marquis Company ( or ), is an American publisher of a number of directories containing short biographies. The books usually are entitled ''Who's Who in...'' followed by some subject, such as ''Who's Who in A ...

'' (1901-1902 edition); p. 540-541; via archive.org He became a very close friend of future

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the 16th president of the United States, serving from 1861 until Assassination of Abraham Lincoln, his assassination in 1865. He led the United States through the American Civil War ...

. As an expert shorthand writer, Hitt served as a note-taker for Lincoln during the famous Lincoln–Douglas debates of 1858. In 1872, Hitt was a personal secretary for

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...

Oliver P. Morton.

Diplomatic career

In December 1874, President

Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was the 18th president of the United States, serving from 1869 to 1877. In 1865, as Commanding General of the United States Army, commanding general, Grant led the Uni ...

appointed Hitt as First Secretary of the American Legation in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. He served from 1874 to 1881 and was Chargé d'Affaires during part of his term.

Assistant U.S. Secretary of State (1881)

He was

United States Assistant Secretary of State Assistant Secretary of State (A/S) is a title used for many executive positions in the United States Department of State, ranking below the Under Secretary of State, under secretaries. A set of six assistant secretaries reporting to the Under Sec ...

under James G. Blaine during President James A. Garfield and President Chester A. Arthur's Administrations in 1881.

U.S. Representative (1882–1906)

Hitt was elected to represent

' 5th district in the

in 1882. Hitt became Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs at the beginning of the Fifty-first Congress and from the Fifty-fourth to Fifty-ninth Congresses. When the

Chinese Exclusion Act The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 was a United States Code, United States federal law signed by President Chester A. Arthur on May 6, 1882, prohibiting all immigration of Chinese laborers for 10 years. The law made exceptions for travelers an ...

of 1882 came up for renewal in 1892, he argued against the alien documentation provisions of the bill: "Never before in a free country was there such a system of tagging a man, like a dog to be caught by the police and examined, and if his tag or collar is not all right, taken to the pound or drowned and shot. Never before was it applied by a free people to a human being, with the exception (which we can never refer to with pride) of the sad days of slavery. …" He was appointed in July 1898, by President

William McKinley William McKinley (January 29, 1843September 14, 1901) was the 25th president of the United States, serving from 1897 until Assassination of William McKinley, his assassination in 1901. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Repub ...

, as a member of the commission created by the

Newlands Resolution The Newlands Resolution, , was a joint resolution passed on July 7, 1898, by the United States Congress to annexation, annex the independent Republic of Hawaii. In 1900, Congress created the Territory of Hawaii. The resolution was drafted by R ...

to establish government in the

Territory of Hawaii The Territory of Hawaii or Hawaii Territory (Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: ''Panalāʻau o Hawaiʻi'') was an organized incorporated territories of the United States, organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from Apri ...

. Hitt received some support for the Vice-Presidential nomination at the 1904 Republican National Convention, including from President

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), also known as Teddy or T.R., was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt previously was involved in New York (state), New York politics, incl ...

, but lost the nomination to Charles Fairbanks. During the last years of his life, he was Regent of the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums, Education center, education and Research institute, research centers, created by the Federal government of the United States, U.S. government "for the increase a ...

Death and legacy

He died on September 20, 1906. He is buried in Oakwood Cemetery in Mount Morris, Illinois, along with his parents. Hitt is the namesake of the community of Hitt, Missouri.

References

External links

Robert Roberts Hitt, late a representative from Illinois, Memorial addresses delivered in the House of Representatives and Senate frontispiece 1907

Public Auction of Mrs. Sally Reynolds Hitt's estate, C.G. Sloan & Co., Washington, DC, March 13-17, 1951, auction catalog at National Gallery of Art Library
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hitt, Robert R. United States assistant secretaries of state 1834 births 1906 deaths People from Mount Morris, Illinois Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Illinois DePauw University alumni 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives