United States Under Secretary of State

This article is about a US government office. For the UK government office, see Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State.

The Under Secretary of State, from 1919 to 1972, was the second-ranking official at the United States Department of State (immediately beneath the United States Secretary of State), serving as the Secretary's principal deputy, chief assistant, and Acting Secretary in the event of the Secretary's absence. Prior second-ranking positions had been the Chief Clerk, the Assistant Secretary of State, and the Counselor. Prior to 1944, a number of offices in the Department reported directly to the Under Secretary. In July 1972, the position of Deputy Secretary superseded that of Under Secretary of State.

In modern times, Under Secretaries of State rank above the Assistant Secretaries of State and below the Deputy Secretaries of State. The Counselor of the United States Department of State, who advises the Secretary of State, holds a rank equivalent to Under Secretary.

The following is a list of current offices bearing the title of "Under Secretary of State":

Under Secretaries of State, 1919–1972

Name Home state Term of office President(s) served under
Frank Lyon Polk New York July 1, 1919June 15, 1920 Woodrow Wilson
Norman H. Davis New York June 15, 1920March 7, 1921 Woodrow Wilson and Warren G. Harding
Henry P. Fletcher Pennsylvania March 8, 1921March 6, 1922 Warren G. Harding
William Phillips Massachusetts April 26, 1922April 11, 1924 Warren G. Harding and Calvin Coolidge
Joseph C. Grew New Hampshire April 16, 1924June 30, 1927 Calvin Coolidge
Robert E. Olds Minnesota July 1, 1927June 30, 1928 Calvin Coolidge
J. Reuben Clark, Jr. Utah August 31, 1928June 19, 1929 Calvin Coolidge and Herbert Hoover
Joseph P. Cotton New York June 20, 1929March 10, 1931 Herbert Hoover
William R. Castle, Jr. District of Columbia April 2, 1931March 5, 1933 Herbert Hoover and Franklin Roosevelt
William Phillips Massachusetts March 6, 1933August 23, 1936 Franklin Roosevelt
Sumner Welles Maryland May 21, 1937September 30, 1943 Franklin Roosevelt
Edward R. Stettinius, Jr. Virginia October 4, 1943November 30, 1944 Franklin Roosevelt
Joseph C. Grew New York December 20, 1944August 15, 1945 Franklin Roosevelt and Harry Truman
Dean G. Acheson Maryland August 16, 1945June 30, 1947 Harry Truman
Robert A. Lovett New York July 1, 1947January 20, 1949 Harry Truman
James E. Webb North Carolina January 28, 1949February 29, 1952 Harry Truman
David K. E. Bruce Virginia April 1, 1952January 20, 1953 Harry Truman
Walter B. Smith District of Columbia February 9, 1953October 1, 1954 Dwight D. Eisenhower
Herbert Hoover, Jr. California October 4, 1954February 5, 1957 Dwight D. Eisenhower
Christian A. Herter Massachusetts February 21, 1957April 22, 1959 Dwight D. Eisenhower
C. Douglas Dillon New Jersey June 12, 1959January 4, 1961 Dwight D. Eisenhower
Chester Bowles Connecticut January 25December 3, 1961 John F. Kennedy
George W. Ball District of Columbia December 4, 1961September 30, 1966 John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson
Nicholas deB. Katzenbach New Jersey October 3, 1966January 20, 1969 Lyndon B. Johnson
Elliot L. Richardson Massachusetts January 23, 1969June 23, 1970 Richard Nixon
John N. Irwin II New York September 21, 1970July 12, 1972 Richard Nixon

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