Ethelbert Watts
Encyclopedia
Ethelbert Watts a United States
diplomat
for over twenty-four years, played important roles in the Spanish-American War
, Russo-Japanese War
, and World War I
.
Henry Miller Watts and Anna Maria Schoenberger, Ethelbert Watts was born in Philadelphia. He was a great-grandson of Revolutionary War brigadier-general Frederick Watts, and also of lieutenant colonel Henry Miller (1751–1824), who led colonial army units in the siege of Boston and the engagements of Long Island, White Plains, Trenton, Princeton, Brandywine, Germantown and Monmouth. He was the nephew of President Ulysses S. Grant's
Commissioner of Agriculture
(and the first president of the board of trustees of what is now Penn State University
), Frederick Watts
.
Ethelbert was educated in Paris, then at the University of Pennsylvania
. His junior year at Penn was interrupted in 1863 by Robert E. Lee’s
invasion of Pennsylvania in the Civil War
. He enlisted as private in Company D, Thirty-second Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteers
. Only seventeen years old, his service was limited to the 32nd Regiment Emergency Militia Infantry, which existed from June 26 to August 1, 1863, and performed duties in the Department of the Susquehanna
until Lee was driven from the Commonwealth after the Battle of Gettysburg
.
After graduating from Penn he studied at the Royal Saxon School of Mines
, Freiberg, Saxony
. Returning to Philadelphia, he was engaged in the iron business in which his father had extensive interests. Henry M. Watts & Sons became the owners of Marietta Furnace No. 2 in Marietta, Pennsylvania
.
In 1871 Mr. Watts wed Emily Pepper, daughter of Dr. William Pepper, Sr. and sister of Dr. William Pepper, Jr.
of Philadelphia. They had four children: Ethel Constance Watts (Mrs. Clark Mellen), Marian Watts, Henry Miller Watts, and U.S. Navy Rear Admiral William Carleton Watts
. Emily Watts died in 1885.
In 1895 Watts married Katharine L. Gregg. They had two children: Francis Watts (Mrs. Theodosius Stevens), and Ethelbert Watts, Jr. (who would become an intelligence officer
during World War II
and military liaison officer
during the Cold War).
His great-granddaughter is actress Elizabeth McGovern
.
appointed him to his first post, at Horgen, Switzerland.
, from coaling at Port Said
, before hurrying through the Suez Canal
to attack Admiral Dewey's
fleet at Manila Bay
. Watts dissuaded Evelyn Baring, 1st Earl of Cromer
, the British counsel-general in Egypt, from permitting Camara to access coal owned by Spain, while at the same time acquiring a lien over coal available in Suez from other sources. The Spanish fleet's inability to obtain coal in Egypt resulted in the fleet being ordered back to Spain. Before leaving this post, he was decorated by the Khedive
with the Order of Osmanieh.
During the next two years he was consul-general at Kingston, Jamaica
, and from there went to Prague
, Bohemia
.
and its largest city. He served there from 1903 to 1907, a turbulent period that included the Russo-Japanese War and the Revolution of 1905. In recognition of his services in protecting Japanese interests in Russia during that war, he was decorated by the Emperor of Japan
with the Order of the Rising Sun
and with that of the Sacred Treasure
.
occupied Brussels and much of Belgium. Both before and after the German occupation, Mr. Watts was instrumental in protecting the interests of American citizens, as well as representing and caring for British and Japanese interests and those of other belligerents.
When the United States entered the war in 1917 all consular offices in German-occupied Belgium were discontinued, and Mr. Watts was ordered home.
He was acting consul at Halifax, Nova Scotia (in maritime Canada
), on December 6, 1917, when the SS Mont-Blanc
, a vessel loaded with munitions, exploded
in the harbor, razing a large section of the city. The U.S. consular offices, located within three blocks of the waterfront, were wrecked, but Watts managed to survive because, at the time of the explosion, he was late for work.
In May, 1918, he was appointed consul-general at Hamilton, Bermuda
. His health began to fail while at this post. He died July 13, 1919, in Philadelphia.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
diplomat
Diplomat
A diplomat is a person appointed by a state to conduct diplomacy with another state or international organization. The main functions of diplomats revolve around the representation and protection of the interests and nationals of the sending state, as well as the promotion of information and...
for over twenty-four years, played important roles in the Spanish-American War
Spanish-American War
The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...
, Russo-Japanese War
Russo-Japanese War
The Russo-Japanese War was "the first great war of the 20th century." It grew out of rival imperial ambitions of the Russian Empire and Japanese Empire over Manchuria and Korea...
, and World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
.
Family and personal background
The second son of United States Minister to AustriaUnited States Ambassador to Austria
This is a list of Ambassadors of the United States to Austria.The United States first established diplomatic relations with Austria in 1838 during the time of the Austrian Empire. Relations between the United States have been continuous since that time except for two interruptions during World War...
Henry Miller Watts and Anna Maria Schoenberger, Ethelbert Watts was born in Philadelphia. He was a great-grandson of Revolutionary War brigadier-general Frederick Watts, and also of lieutenant colonel Henry Miller (1751–1824), who led colonial army units in the siege of Boston and the engagements of Long Island, White Plains, Trenton, Princeton, Brandywine, Germantown and Monmouth. He was the nephew of President Ulysses S. Grant's
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
Commissioner of Agriculture
United States Department of Agriculture
The United States Department of Agriculture is the United States federal executive department responsible for developing and executing U.S. federal government policy on farming, agriculture, and food...
(and the first president of the board of trustees of what is now Penn State University
Pennsylvania State University
The Pennsylvania State University, commonly referred to as Penn State or PSU, is a public research university with campuses and facilities throughout the state of Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1855, the university has a threefold mission of teaching, research, and public service...
), Frederick Watts
Frederick Watts
Frederick Watts , is called the “Father of Penn State University” and was a prominent agricultural reformer, lawyer and businessman who headed the U.S. Department of Agriculture as Commissioner of Agriculture from 1871-1877 under President Ulysses S...
.
Ethelbert was educated in Paris, then at the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
. His junior year at Penn was interrupted in 1863 by Robert E. Lee’s
Robert E. Lee
Robert Edward Lee was a career military officer who is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War....
invasion of Pennsylvania in the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. He enlisted as private in Company D, Thirty-second Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteers
3rd Pennsylvania Reserve Regiment
The 3rd Pennsylvania Reserve Regiment, also known as the 32nd Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Regiment, was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It was part of the 2nd Brigade of the Pennsylvania Reserves division.-Service:The 3rd Pennsylvania Reserves...
. Only seventeen years old, his service was limited to the 32nd Regiment Emergency Militia Infantry, which existed from June 26 to August 1, 1863, and performed duties in the Department of the Susquehanna
Department of the Susquehanna
The Department of the Susquehanna was a military department created by the United States War Department during the Gettysburg Campaign of the American Civil War...
until Lee was driven from the Commonwealth after the Battle of Gettysburg
Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg , was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The battle with the largest number of casualties in the American Civil War, it is often described as the war's turning point. Union Maj. Gen. George Gordon Meade's Army of the Potomac...
.
After graduating from Penn he studied at the Royal Saxon School of Mines
Technische Universität Bergakademie Freiberg
The Technische Universität Bergakademie Freiberg is a small German University of Technology with about 5000 students in the city of Freiberg, Saxony...
, Freiberg, Saxony
Freiberg, Saxony
Freiberg is a city in the Free State of Saxony, Germany, administrative center of the Mittelsachsen district.-History:The city was founded in 1186, and has been a center of the mining industry in the Ore Mountains for centuries...
. Returning to Philadelphia, he was engaged in the iron business in which his father had extensive interests. Henry M. Watts & Sons became the owners of Marietta Furnace No. 2 in Marietta, Pennsylvania
Marietta, Pennsylvania
Marietta is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,689 at the 2000 census. It is located on the east bank of the Susquehanna River just north of Columbia.-Geography:Marietta is located at ....
.
In 1871 Mr. Watts wed Emily Pepper, daughter of Dr. William Pepper, Sr. and sister of Dr. William Pepper, Jr.
William Pepper
William Pepper, Jr., M.D. , an American physician, was a leader in medical education in the nineteenth century, and a longtime Provost of the University of Pennsylvania.-Early life:...
of Philadelphia. They had four children: Ethel Constance Watts (Mrs. Clark Mellen), Marian Watts, Henry Miller Watts, and U.S. Navy Rear Admiral William Carleton Watts
William Carleton Watts
William Carleton Watts was a rear admiral in the United States Navy, who served in the Spanish-American War, World War I, and World War II.-Early life and career:...
. Emily Watts died in 1885.
In 1895 Watts married Katharine L. Gregg. They had two children: Francis Watts (Mrs. Theodosius Stevens), and Ethelbert Watts, Jr. (who would become an intelligence officer
Intelligence officer
An intelligence officer is a person employed by an organization to collect, compile and/or analyze information which is of use to that organization...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and military liaison officer
Liaison officer
A liaison officer or LNO is a person that liaises between two organizations to communicate and coordinate their activities. Generally, they are used to achieve the best utilization of resources or employment of services of one organization by another. In the military, liaison officers may...
during the Cold War).
His great-granddaughter is actress Elizabeth McGovern
Elizabeth McGovern
-Early life:McGovern was born in Evanston, Illinois, the daughter of Katharine Wolcott , a high school teacher, and William Montgomery McGovern, Jr., a university professor. Her paternal grandfather was adventurer William Montgomery McGovern and her maternal great-grandfather was U.S. diplomat...
.
Diplomatic service
In March 1896 (at age fifty), Watts entered the foreign service of the United States. President Grover ClevelandGrover Cleveland
Stephen Grover Cleveland was the 22nd and 24th president of the United States. Cleveland is the only president to serve two non-consecutive terms and therefore is the only individual to be counted twice in the numbering of the presidents...
appointed him to his first post, at Horgen, Switzerland.
Spanish-American war
The next year Watts was appointed vice and deputy consul-general at Cairo, Egypt, where he was in charge during the Spanish-American War. While there he was instrumental in preventing the Spanish fleet, under Admiral CamaraManuel de Camara
Manuel de la Cámara y Libermoore was a rear admiral of the Spanish Navy during the Spanish-American War.Immediately after the outbreak of the Spanish-American War in April 1898, the Spanish Navy ordered major units of its fleet to concentrate at Cadiz to form the 2nd Squadron, under the command of...
, from coaling at Port Said
Port Said
Port Said is a city that lies in north east Egypt extending about 30 km along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, north of the Suez Canal, with an approximate population of 603,787...
, before hurrying through the Suez Canal
Suez Canal
The Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...
to attack Admiral Dewey's
George Dewey
George Dewey was an admiral of the United States Navy. He is best known for his victory at the Battle of Manila Bay during the Spanish-American War...
fleet at Manila Bay
Manila Bay
Manila Bay is a natural harbor which serves the Port of Manila , in the Philippines.The bay is considered to be one of the best natural harbors in Southeast Asia and one of the finest in the world...
. Watts dissuaded Evelyn Baring, 1st Earl of Cromer
Evelyn Baring, 1st Earl of Cromer
Evelyn Baring, 1st Earl of Cromer, GCB, OM, GCMG, KCSI, CIE, PC, FRS , was a British statesman, diplomat and colonial administrator....
, the British counsel-general in Egypt, from permitting Camara to access coal owned by Spain, while at the same time acquiring a lien over coal available in Suez from other sources. The Spanish fleet's inability to obtain coal in Egypt resulted in the fleet being ordered back to Spain. Before leaving this post, he was decorated by the Khedive
Khedive
The term Khedive is a title largely equivalent to the English word viceroy. It was first used, without official recognition, by Muhammad Ali Pasha , the Wāli of Egypt and Sudan, and vassal of the Ottoman Empire...
with the Order of Osmanieh.
During the next two years he was consul-general at Kingston, Jamaica
Kingston, Jamaica
Kingston is the capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long sand spit which connects the town of Port Royal and the Norman Manley International Airport to the rest of the island...
, and from there went to Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
, Bohemia
Bohemia
Bohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...
.
Russo-Japanese war
While at Prague he accepted the position of consul-general at St. Petersburg, which was then the capital of the Russian EmpireRussian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
and its largest city. He served there from 1903 to 1907, a turbulent period that included the Russo-Japanese War and the Revolution of 1905. In recognition of his services in protecting Japanese interests in Russia during that war, he was decorated by the Emperor of Japan
Emperor of Japan
The Emperor of Japan is, according to the 1947 Constitution of Japan, "the symbol of the state and of the unity of the people." He is a ceremonial figurehead under a form of constitutional monarchy and is head of the Japanese Imperial Family with functions as head of state. He is also the highest...
with the Order of the Rising Sun
Order of the Rising Sun
The is a Japanese order, established in 1875 by Emperor Meiji of Japan. The Order was the first national decoration awarded by the Japanese Government, created on April 10, 1875 by decree of the Council of State. The badge features rays of sunlight from the rising sun...
and with that of the Sacred Treasure
Order of the Sacred Treasure
The is a Japanese Order, established on January 4, 1888 by Emperor Meiji of Japan as the Order of Meiji. It is awarded in eight classes . It is generally awarded for long and/or meritorious service and considered to be the lowest of the Japanese orders of merit...
.
World War I
From April 1907 to April 1917, he was consul-general at Brussels, Belgium. World War I raged during the last two and one-half years of that period, when the German EmpireGerman Empire
The German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...
occupied Brussels and much of Belgium. Both before and after the German occupation, Mr. Watts was instrumental in protecting the interests of American citizens, as well as representing and caring for British and Japanese interests and those of other belligerents.
When the United States entered the war in 1917 all consular offices in German-occupied Belgium were discontinued, and Mr. Watts was ordered home.
He was acting consul at Halifax, Nova Scotia (in maritime Canada
Maritimes
The Maritime provinces, also called the Maritimes or the Canadian Maritimes, is a region of Eastern Canada consisting of three provinces, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. On the Atlantic coast, the Maritimes are a subregion of Atlantic Canada, which also includes the...
), on December 6, 1917, when the SS Mont-Blanc
SS Mont-Blanc
The SS Mont-Blanc was a French freighter which exploded while carrying ammunition in Halifax Harbour on December 6, 1917 causing the Halifax Explosion which killed 2000 people. The explosion was caused by a collision with the Norwegian ship SS Imo...
, a vessel loaded with munitions, exploded
Halifax Explosion
The Halifax Explosion occurred on Thursday, December 6, 1917, when the city of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, was devastated by the huge detonation of the SS Mont-Blanc, a French cargo ship, fully loaded with wartime explosives, which accidentally collided with the Norwegian SS Imo in "The Narrows"...
in the harbor, razing a large section of the city. The U.S. consular offices, located within three blocks of the waterfront, were wrecked, but Watts managed to survive because, at the time of the explosion, he was late for work.
In May, 1918, he was appointed consul-general at Hamilton, Bermuda
Hamilton, Bermuda
Hamilton is the capital of the British Overseas Territory of Bermuda. It is the territory's financial centre and a major port and tourist destination.-Geography:...
. His health began to fail while at this post. He died July 13, 1919, in Philadelphia.