Whitney Shepardson
Encyclopedia
Whitney Hart Shepardson was an American businessman and foreign policy expert. He headed the Secret Intelligence Branch
of the Office of Strategic Services
during World War II
..
Shepardson was born in Worcester, Massachusetts
. He attended Colgate Academy, where his father was principal. He graduated from Colgate University
before attending Balliol College, Oxford
as a Rhodes Scholar
. He completed his education at Harvard Law School
. He would practice law only briefly, serving as an attorney for the United States Shipping Board
between May 1917 and July 1918.
Shepardson's involvement in international relations began when sent to the 1919 Paris Peace Conference
by the State Department
as an aide to Edward M. House
, where he became secretary to the commission responsible for drafting the Covenant of the League of Nations
. He was secretary also to a group of Americans seeking to organize the international relations institute which would become the Council on Foreign Relations
. Shepardson was a founding member of the board. From 1920, he wrote for the Round Table
, a British journal edited by former Beit Lecturer in Colonial History, Lionel Curtis.
Following the war, he worked in Vienna as European manager for American shipping agency P.N. Gray and Co.
Between 1925 and 1927 he served as a director on John D. Rockefeller
's General Education Board
, specialising in the development of agricultural and biological research. He was a director of the Woodrow Wilson Foundation
.
Shepardson was president of Bates International Bag Company from 1928 to 1930. He was vice-president of International Railways of Central America, a transport arm of the United Fruit Company
, from 1931 until 1942.
After the outbreak of war in Europe he was appointed to lead the political group of the CFR's War and Peace Studies
project. Following the involvement of the United States in war, he served with the Office of Strategic Services in Washington and London. In London, he was special assistant to the U.S. ambassador, and became first London head of Secret Intelligence. He became head of the agency's Secret Intelligence Branch in 1943, staying with the organization which would ultimately become part of the Central Intelligence Agency
until 1946.
Post-war, he became director of the Carnegie Corporation
's British Dominions and Colonies Fund.
From 1953 to 1956 Shepardson served as president of the National Committee for a Free Europe
.
Secret Intelligence Branch
The Secret Intelligence Branch of the United States' Office of Strategic Services was a wartime foreign intelligence service responsible for the collection of human intelligence from a network of field stations in Asia, Europe, and the Middle East....
of the Office of Strategic Services
Office of Strategic Services
The Office of Strategic Services was a United States intelligence agency formed during World War II. It was the wartime intelligence agency, and it was a predecessor of the Central Intelligence Agency...
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...
..
Shepardson was born in Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester is a city and the county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, as of the 2010 Census the city's population is 181,045, making it the second largest city in New England after Boston....
. He attended Colgate Academy, where his father was principal. He graduated from Colgate University
Colgate University
Colgate University is a private liberal arts college in Hamilton, New York, USA. The school was founded in 1819 as a Baptist seminary and later became non-denominational. It is named for the Colgate family who greatly contributed to the university's endowment in the 19th century.Colgate has 52...
before attending Balliol College, Oxford
Balliol College, Oxford
Balliol College , founded in 1263, is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England but founded by a family with strong Scottish connections....
as a Rhodes Scholar
Rhodes Scholarship
The Rhodes Scholarship, named after Cecil Rhodes, is an international postgraduate award for study at the University of Oxford. It was the first large-scale programme of international scholarships, and is widely considered the "world's most prestigious scholarship" by many public sources such as...
. He completed his education at 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...
. He would practice law only briefly, serving as an attorney for the United States Shipping Board
United States Shipping Board
The United States Shipping Board was established as an emergency agency by the Shipping Act , 7 September 1916. It was formally organized 30 January 1917. It was sometimes referred to as the War Shipping Board.http://www.gwpda.org/wwi-www/Hurley/bridgeTC.htm | The Bridge To France by Edward N....
between May 1917 and July 1918.
Shepardson's involvement in international relations began when sent to the 1919 Paris Peace Conference
Paris Peace Conference, 1919
The Paris Peace Conference was the meeting of the Allied victors following the end of World War I to set the peace terms for the defeated Central Powers following the armistices of 1918. It took place in Paris in 1919 and involved diplomats from more than 32 countries and nationalities...
by the State Department
United States Department of State
The United States Department of State , is the United States federal executive department responsible for international relations of the United States, equivalent to the foreign ministries of other countries...
as an aide to Edward M. House
Edward M. House
Edward Mandell House was an American diplomat, politician, and presidential advisor. Commonly known by the title of Colonel House, although he had no military experience, he had enormous personal influence with U.S...
, where he became secretary to the commission responsible for drafting the Covenant of the League of Nations
Covenant of the League of Nations
-Creation:Early drafts for a possible League of Nations began even before the end of the First World War. A London-based study group led by James Bryce and G. Lowes Dickinson made proposals adopted by the British League of Nations Society, founded in 1915. Another group in the United States—which...
. He was secretary also to a group of Americans seeking to organize the international relations institute which would become the Council on Foreign Relations
Council on Foreign Relations
The Council on Foreign Relations is an American nonprofit nonpartisan membership organization, publisher, and think tank specializing in U.S. foreign policy and international affairs...
. Shepardson was a founding member of the board. From 1920, he wrote for the Round Table
The Round Table Journal
The Round Table: The Commonwealth Journal of International Affairs is a policy matters journal relating to the Commonwealth of Nations.-History:...
, a British journal edited by former Beit Lecturer in Colonial History, Lionel Curtis.
Following the war, he worked in Vienna as European manager for American shipping agency P.N. Gray and Co.
Between 1925 and 1927 he served as a director on John D. Rockefeller
John D. Rockefeller
John Davison Rockefeller was an American oil industrialist, investor, and philanthropist. He was the founder of the Standard Oil Company, which dominated the oil industry and was the first great U.S. business trust. Rockefeller revolutionized the petroleum industry and defined the structure of...
's General Education Board
General Education Board
The General Education Board was a philanthropy created by John D. Rockefeller and Frederick T. Gates in 1902. Rockefeller gave it $180 million, which was used primarily to support higher education and medical schools in the United States, and to help rural white and black schools in the South, as...
, specialising in the development of agricultural and biological research. He was a director of the Woodrow Wilson Foundation
Woodrow Wilson Foundation
The Woodrow Wilson Foundation was an educational non-profit created in 1922, organized under the laws of New York, for the "perpetuation of Wilson's ideals" through publications and support of research. Franklin D. Roosevelt was the national chairman, and there were local chairmen in each of the 48...
.
Shepardson was president of Bates International Bag Company from 1928 to 1930. He was vice-president of International Railways of Central America, a transport arm of the United Fruit Company
United Fruit Company
It had a deep and long-lasting impact on the economic and political development of several Latin American countries. Critics often accused it of exploitative neocolonialism and described it as the archetypal example of the influence of a multinational corporation on the internal politics of the...
, from 1931 until 1942.
After the outbreak of war in Europe he was appointed to lead the political group of the CFR's War and Peace Studies
War and Peace Studies
War and Peace Studies was a project carried out by the Council on Foreign Relations between 1939 and 1945 before and during American involvement in World War II. It was intended to advise the U.S. Government on conduct in the war and the subsequent peace....
project. Following the involvement of the United States in war, he served with the Office of Strategic Services in Washington and London. In London, he was special assistant to the U.S. ambassador, and became first London head of Secret Intelligence. He became head of the agency's Secret Intelligence Branch in 1943, staying with the organization which would ultimately become part of the Central Intelligence Agency
Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
until 1946.
Post-war, he became director of the Carnegie Corporation
Carnegie Corporation of New York
Carnegie Corporation of New York, which was established by Andrew Carnegie in 1911 "to promote the advancement and diffusion of knowledge and understanding," is one of the oldest, largest and most influential of American foundations...
's British Dominions and Colonies Fund.
From 1953 to 1956 Shepardson served as president of the National Committee for a Free Europe
National Committee for a Free Europe
The National Committee for a Free Europe was an American anti-communist organization, founded on March 17, 1949 in New York, which worked for the spreading of American influence in Europe and to oppose Stalin's Soviet occupation and dictatorship...
.