R. Borden Reams

Robert Borden Reams (January 27, 1904 – March 26, 1994) was an American diplomat.[1][2] He was the first United States Ambassador to Upper Volta (now Burkina Faso), Dahomey (now Benin), Niger, and Ivory Coast (now Côte d'Ivoire) simultaneously. On July 31, 1960, an envoy, Donald R. Norland, had presented his credentials as Chargé d'Affaires ad interim on the previous day of Reams' appointment.

R. Borden Reams
R. Borden Reams with Félix Houphouët-Boigny, John F. Kennedy and Jackie Kennedy in 1962
1st United States Ambassador to Burkina Faso
In office December 6, 1960 – June 26, 1961
President	Dwight D. Eisenhower
Preceded by	office established
Succeeded by	Thomas S. Estes
1st United States Ambassador to Benin
In office November 26, 1960 – July 31, 1961
President	Dwight D. Eisenhower
Preceded by	office established
Succeeded by	Robinson McIlvaine
1st United States Ambassador to Niger
In office November 23, 1960 – August 2, 1961
President	Dwight D. Eisenhower
Preceded by	office established
Succeeded by	Mercer Cook
1st United States Ambassador to Côte d'Ivoire
In office November 20, 1960 – May 12, 1962
President	Dwight D. Eisenhower
Preceded by	office established
Succeeded by	James Wine
United States Minister to Denmark Acting
In office June 5, 1940 – December 20, 1941
President	Franklin D. Roosevelt
Preceded by	Ray Atherton
Succeeded by	Monnett Bain Davis (1945)
Personal details
Born	January 27, 1904 Luthersburg, Pennsylvania
Died	March 26, 1994 (aged 90) Panama City, Florida
Spouse(s)	Charlotte Johns
Profession	Diplomat

Biography

Reams was born in Luthersburg, Clearfield County, Pennsylvania, on January 27, 1904.[3][4] He was the son of John Homer Reams and Lulu Ann (Borden) Reams. He married his wife Charlotte Johns on April 6, 1924. He later joined the U.S Foreign and saw overseas post as U.S. Vice Consul in Le Havre, France from 1929 to 1931, South Africa in Johannesburg from 1931 to 33 and again from 1935 to 1936; From 1933 to 1935 Reams was U.S. Vice Consul in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. He later became U.S. Consul in Copenhagen, Denmark in 1937 until 1940.

On October 14, 1960, Reams was nominated to be the U.S. Ambassador to Dahomey, Niger, Ivory Coast, and Upper Volta by President Dwight D. Eisenhower. He was a resident at Abidjan during his ambassadorship. By 1962, Reams had been superseded by respective ambassadors to each country he represented.

Reams died in 1994 of an aortic aneurysm at 90 years of age.[5]

References

1. "Former Ambassadors | Embassy of the United States Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire". abidjan.usembassy.gov. Archived from the original on 2015-05-18. Retrieved 2015-05-15.
2. "R Borden Reams". NameBase. Retrieved 2012-01-20.
3. Institute for Research in Biography, Inc; Institute for Research in Biography (New York, N.Y.) (1948). World Biography. Institute for Research in Biography. Retrieved 2015-05-15.
4. Lawrence Kestenbaum. "The Political Graveyard: Index to Politicians: Reade to Rector". politicalgraveyard.com. Retrieved 2015-05-15.
5. "Oscar Dodek Sr. Dies". pqasb.pqarchiver.com. Retrieved 2015-05-15.

 This article incorporates public domain material from the United States Department of State website https://www.state.gov/countries-areas/. (U.S. Bilateral Relations Fact Sheets)