Charles Joseph Bonaparte
Encyclopedia
Charles Joseph Bonaparte (June 9, 1851 – June 28, 1921) was an American
lawyer and political activist from Maryland
who served in the Cabinet
of President Theodore Roosevelt
. Bonaparte was Secretary of the Navy
and then Attorney General. While Attorney General, he created the Bureau of Investigation
(now the FBI). He was a great-nephew of Emperor Napoleon I of France
.
(1805–1870) and Susan May Williams
(1812–1881), from whom the American line of the Bonaparte
family descended, and a grandson of Jérôme Bonaparte
, the youngest brother of Emperor Napoleon I. However, the American Bonapartes were not considered part of the dynasty and never used any titles.
He graduated from Harvard University
and Harvard Law School
, where he later served as a university overseer. He practiced law in Baltimore and became prominent in municipal and national reform movements.
On September 1, 1875, Bonaparte married the former Ellen Channing Day (1852–1924), daughter of attorney Thomas Mills Day and Anna Jones Dunn. They had no children.
In 1899 Bonaparte was the keynote speaker for the first graduating class of the College of Notre Dame of Maryland
. He spoke on "The Significance of the Bachelor's Degree":
Bonaparte lived in Baltimore County, Maryland
and his home, Bella Vista, was designed by the architects Wyatt & Nolting
in 1896. It lies east of Maryland Route 147
. The house was not electrified since Bonaparte refused to have electricity or telegraph lines installed due to a dislike of technology, verified by his use of horse-drawn coach until his death.
Bonaparte died in Bella Vista, and is interred at Baltimore's Loudon Park Cemetery
. He died of "Saint Vitus Dance" (chorea
). A nearby street in Baltimore County bears the name of Bonaparte Ave.
After Bonaparte's death the house was later owned by bootleggers Peter and Michael Kelly. After they left, it was destroyed in a fire caused by faulty wiring on January 20, 1933. The site was replaced by a poured concrete mansion, but a large carriage house dating back to 1896 is still on the estate.
from 1902 to 1904, chairman of the National Civil Service Reform League in 1904 and appointed a trustee of The Catholic University of America
.
In 1905, President Theodore Roosevelt
appointed Bonaparte Secretary of the Navy
. In 1906 Bonaparte moved to the office of Attorney General
, which he held until the end of Roosevelt's term. He was active in suits brought against the trusts and was largely responsible for breaking up the tobacco monopoly. In 1908, Bonaparte founded the Bureau of Investigation
(BOI).
He was one of the founders, and for a time the president, of the National Municipal League.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
lawyer and political activist from Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
who served in the Cabinet
United States Cabinet
The Cabinet of the United States is composed of the most senior appointed officers of the executive branch of the federal government of the United States, which are generally the heads of the federal executive departments...
of President Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...
. Bonaparte was Secretary of the Navy
United States Secretary of the Navy
The Secretary of the Navy of the United States of America is the head of the Department of the Navy, a component organization of the Department of Defense...
and then Attorney General. While Attorney General, he created the Bureau of Investigation
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
(now the FBI). He was a great-nephew of Emperor Napoleon I of France
Napoleon I of France
Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military and political leader during the latter stages of the French Revolution.As Napoleon I, he was Emperor of the French from 1804 to 1815...
.
Biography
Charles Joseph Bonaparte was born in Baltimore, Maryland. He was the son of Jérôme Napoleon BonaparteJérôme Napoleon Bonaparte
Jérôme Napoleon Bonaparte was a son of Jérôme Bonaparte and Elizabeth Patterson, an American....
(1805–1870) and Susan May Williams
Susan May Williams
Susan May Williams was the daughter of Benjamin Williams, a prominent Baltimore merchant originally from Roxbury, Massachusetts, and his wife, Sarah Copeland, widow of Nathaniel Morton...
(1812–1881), from whom the American line of the Bonaparte
Bonaparte
The House of Bonaparte is an imperial and royal European dynasty founded by Napoleon I of France in 1804, a French military leader who rose to notability out of the French Revolution and transformed the French Republic into the First French Empire within five years of his coup d'état...
family descended, and a grandson of Jérôme Bonaparte
Jérôme Bonaparte
Jérôme-Napoléon Bonaparte, French Prince, King of Westphalia, 1st Prince of Montfort was the youngest brother of Napoleon, who made him king of Westphalia...
, the youngest brother of Emperor Napoleon I. However, the American Bonapartes were not considered part of the dynasty and never used any titles.
He graduated from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
and Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. The school is routinely ranked by the U.S...
, where he later served as a university overseer. He practiced law in Baltimore and became prominent in municipal and national reform movements.
On September 1, 1875, Bonaparte married the former Ellen Channing Day (1852–1924), daughter of attorney Thomas Mills Day and Anna Jones Dunn. They had no children.
In 1899 Bonaparte was the keynote speaker for the first graduating class of the College of Notre Dame of Maryland
College of Notre Dame of Maryland
Notre Dame of Maryland University is an independent, Catholic-affiliated, liberal arts college located in Baltimore, Maryland, United States, that primarily serves female students.-History:...
. He spoke on "The Significance of the Bachelor's Degree":
Today, and here for the first time in America, a Catholic college for the education of young ladies bestows the bachelor's degree...
The Style of Scholarship...which benefits the recipient of the bachelor's degree has two distinctive and essential marks. It implies in the first place a broad, generous sympathy with every form of honest, rational and disinterested study or research.
A Scholar who is also, and first of all, a gentleman may be...specially interested is some particular field of knowledge, but he is indifferent to none. He knows how to value every successful effort to master truth; how to look beyond the little things of science...to the great things - God's handiwork as seen in nature, God's mind as shadowed in the workings of the minds of men.
Young ladies, of this degree has such meaning for your brothers, what meaning has it for you
Bonaparte lived in Baltimore County, Maryland
Baltimore County, Maryland
Baltimore County is a county located in the northern part of the US state of Maryland. In 2010, its population was 805,029. It is part of the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area. Its county seat is Towson. The name of the county was derived from the barony of the Proprietor of the Maryland...
and his home, Bella Vista, was designed by the architects Wyatt & Nolting
James Bosley Noel Wyatt
Architect James Bosley Noel Wyatt was born in 1847. His education included: Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and the Ecole des Beaux Arts. His career began working in the offices of E.F. Baldwin where he began his affiliation with Joseph Evans Sperry. Their partnership...
in 1896. It lies east of Maryland Route 147
Maryland Route 147
Maryland Route 147 is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. Known as Harford Road, the state highway runs from U.S. Route 1 in Baltimore north to US 1 and US 1 Business in Benson. MD 147 is an alternate route to US 1 between Baltimore and Bel Air, the county seat of Harford County...
. The house was not electrified since Bonaparte refused to have electricity or telegraph lines installed due to a dislike of technology, verified by his use of horse-drawn coach until his death.
Bonaparte died in Bella Vista, and is interred at Baltimore's Loudon Park Cemetery
Loudon Park Cemetery
Loudon Park Cemetery a subsidiary of Stewart Enterprises, Inc., the second largest operator of funeral homes and cemeteries in the United States, is a cemetery in Baltimore, Maryland. It was incorporated in 1853 on the site of the "Loudon" estate, previously owned by a local merchant and politician...
. He died of "Saint Vitus Dance" (chorea
Chorea (disease)
Choreia is an abnormal involuntary movement disorder, one of a group of neurological disorders called dyskinesias. The term choreia is derived from the Greek word χορεία , see choreia , as the quick movements of the feet or hands are vaguely comparable to dancing or piano playing.The term...
). A nearby street in Baltimore County bears the name of Bonaparte Ave.
After Bonaparte's death the house was later owned by bootleggers Peter and Michael Kelly. After they left, it was destroyed in a fire caused by faulty wiring on January 20, 1933. The site was replaced by a poured concrete mansion, but a large carriage house dating back to 1896 is still on the estate.
Political activity
He was a member of the Board of Indian CommissionersBoard of Indian Commissioners
The Board of Indian Commissioners was a committee that advised the federal government of the United States on Native American policy and it inspected supplies delivered to Indian agencies to ensure the fufillment of government treaty obligations to tribes....
from 1902 to 1904, chairman of the National Civil Service Reform League in 1904 and appointed a trustee of The Catholic University of America
The Catholic University of America
The Catholic University of America is a private university located in Washington, D.C. in the United States. It is a pontifical university of the Catholic Church in the United States and the only institution of higher education founded by the U.S. Catholic bishops...
.
In 1905, President Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...
appointed Bonaparte Secretary of the Navy
United States Secretary of the Navy
The Secretary of the Navy of the United States of America is the head of the Department of the Navy, a component organization of the Department of Defense...
. In 1906 Bonaparte moved to the office of Attorney General
United States Attorney General
The United States Attorney General is the head of the United States Department of Justice concerned with legal affairs and is the chief law enforcement officer of the United States government. The attorney general is considered to be the chief lawyer of the U.S. government...
, which he held until the end of Roosevelt's term. He was active in suits brought against the trusts and was largely responsible for breaking up the tobacco monopoly. In 1908, Bonaparte founded the Bureau of Investigation
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
(BOI).
He was one of the founders, and for a time the president, of the National Municipal League.