Chief Clerk (United States Department of State)
The Chief Clerk, between 1789 and 1853, was the second-ranking official within the United States Department of State, known as the Department of Foreign Affairs before September 5, 1789. Section 2 of the Act of Congress of July 27, 1789 (1 Stat. 28) establishing a Department of Foreign Affairs, authorized the Secretary to appoint a Chief Clerk, who would have custody of the Department's records whenever the office of the Secretary should be vacant. From 1789 to 1853, when Congress created the position of Assistant Secretary of State, the Chief Clerk was the second-ranking officer of the Department of State, and was responsible for supervision of Department personnel, distribution of correspondence, and day-to-day operations.
All Chief Clerks were designated, not commissioned. After 1853, the Chief Clerk's duties included at various times custody of archives, distribution of correspondence, and supervision of Department personnel and property. The office was abolished on January 26, 1939, re-established August 6, 1942, as the Office of the Chief Clerk and Administrative Assistant, and abolished in the reorganization of January 15, 1944. Although the Chief Clerk was the second-ranking officer until 1853, the holder of the office of Chief Clerk did not always become Acting Secretary of State in the Secretary's absence, and sometimes that position was delegated to other Cabinet members.
List of Chief Clerks
All Chief Clerks were non-career appointees.
| List | Name | State of Residency | Term Start | Term End | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Henry Remsen Jr. | New York | July 27, 1789 | December 31, 1789 | As Under Secretary of Foreign Affairs, was appointed Chief Clerk after creation of Department of Foreign Affairs. |
| 2 | Roger Alden | Connecticut | January 1, 1790 | July 25, 1790 | |
| 3 | Henry Remsen Jr. | New York | September 1, 1790 | March 31, 1792 | |
| 4 | George Taylor Jr. | New York | April 1, 1792 | February 7, 1798 | |
| 5 | Jacob Wagner | Pennsylvania | February 8, 1798 | March 31, 1807 | |
| 6 | John Graham | Virginia | July 1, 1807 | July 18, 1817 | |
| 7 | Daniel Brent | Virginia | September 22, 1817 | August 22, 1833 | |
| 8 | Asbury Dickins | North Carolina | August 23, 1833 | December 12, 1836 | |
| 9 | Aaron Ogden Dayton | New Jersey | December 13, 1836 | June 25, 1838 | |
| 10 | Aaron Vail | New York | June 26, 1838 | July 15, 1840 | |
| 11 | Jacob L. Martin | North Carolina | July 16, 1840 | March 5, 1841 | |
| 12 | Daniel Fletcher Webster | Massachusetts | March 6, 1841 | April 23, 1843 | |
| 13 | William S. Derrick | Pennsylvania | April 24, 1843 | April 9, 1844 | |
| 14 | Richard K. Cralle | Virginia | April 10, 1844 | March 10, 1845 | |
| 15 | William S. Derrick | Pennsylvania | March 11, 1845 | August 27, 1845 | |
| 16 | Nicholas P. Trist | Virginia | August 28, 1845 | April 14, 1847 | |
| 17 | William S. Derrick | Pennsylvania | April 15, 1847 | January 25, 1848 | |
| 18 | John Appleton | Maine | January 26, 1848 | April 25, 1848 | |
| 19 | William S. Derrick | Pennsylvania | April 25, 1848 | May 15, 1852 | |
| 20 | William Hunter Jr. | Rhode Island | May 17, 1852 | May 7, 1855 | Continued to serve as Chief Clerk after the appointment of A. Dudley Mann as Assistant Secretary of State. |
References
- Office of the Historian, Bureau of Public Affairs. "Chief Clerks". Department of State. Retrieved September 26, 2011.