This is a record of Ambassadors of the United States to Liberia.
Liberia, as a nation, had its beginnings in 1821 when groups of free blacks from the United States emigrated from the U.S. and began establishing colonies on the coast under the direction of the American Colonization Society. Between 1821 and 1847, by a combination of purchase and conquest, American Societies developed the colonies under the name “Liberia”, dominating the native inhabitants of the area. In 1847 the colony declared itself an independent nation. Because it was already established as a nation, Liberia avoided becoming a European colony during the great age of European colonies in Africa during the latter half of the 19th century.
The United States recognized Liberia as an independent state in 1862 and commissioned its first representative to Liberia in 1863. The representative, Abraham Hanson, was appointed as Commissioner/Consul General. The status of the commissioner was later upgraded to Minister, and finally to full Ambassador in 1949. Relations between the United States and Liberia have been continuous since that time.
Eight U.S. ambassadors have died at their post serving in Liberia.
The U.S. Embassy in Liberia is located in Monrovia.
President Lincoln nominated John J. Henry of Delaware for the post on March 11, 1863 but Henry declined the appointment.
Abraham HansonTitle: Commissioner/Consul General
Appointed: June 8, 1863
Presented credentials: February 23, 1864
Terminated mission: Died at post on or before July 20, 1866
Note: The office was upgraded to Minister Resident/Consul General beginning with the next envoy.
John SeysTitle: Minister Resident/Consul General
Appointed: October 8, 1866
Presented credentials: January 2, 1867
Terminated mission: Left post June 11, 1870
President Johnson appointed J. R. Clay to the office in 1869 but the nomination was not confirmed by the Senate.
President Grant appointed F. E. Dumas to the office on April 21, 1869 but Dumas declined the appointment.
James W. Mason
Title: Minister Resident/Consul General
Appointed: March 29, 1870
Presented credentials: Did not proceed to his post, did not present credentials
J. Milton Turner
Title: Minister Resident/Consul General
Appointed: March 1, 1871
Presented credentials: July 19, 1871
Terminated mission: Left post May 7, 1878
John H. Smyth
Title: Minister Resident/Consul General
Appointed: May 23, 1878
Presented credentials: August 19, 1878
Terminated mission: Relinquished charge to his successor, December 22, 1881
Henry Highland GarnetTitle: Minister Resident/Consul General
Appointed: June 30, 1881
Presented credentials: December 22, 1881
Terminated mission: Died at post February 13, 1882
John H. Smyth
Title: Minister Resident/Consul General
Appointed: April 12, 1882
Presented credentials: August 4, 1882
Terminated mission: Presented recall, December 14, 1885, when his successor presented credentials
Moses A. HopkinsTitle: Minister Resident/Consul General
Appointed: September 11, 1885
Presented credentials: December 14, 1885
Terminated mission: Died at post August 3, 1886
Charles H. J. TaylorTitle: Minister Resident/Consul General
Appointed: March 11, 1887
Presented credentials: June 4, 1887
Terminated mission: Left post soon after September 22, 1887
Ezekiel E. Smith
Title: Minister Resident/Consul General
Appointed: April 24, 1888
Presented credentials: July 21, 1888
Terminated mission: Left post May 20, 1890
Alexander Clark
Title: Minister Resident/Consul General
Appointed: August 16, 1890
Presented credentials: November 25, 1890
Terminated mission: Died at post May 31, 1891
William D. McCoy
Title: Minister Resident/Consul General
Appointed: January 11, 1892
Presented credentials: March 28, 1892
Terminated mission: Died at post May 15, 1893
William H. Heard
Title: Minister Resident/Consul General
Appointed: February 23, 1895
Presented credentials: May 6, 1895
Terminated mission: Presented recall, April 28, 1898
Owen L. W. Smith
Title: Minister Resident/Consul General
Appointed: February 11, 1898
Presented credentials: On or shortly before May 11, 1898
Terminated mission: Presented recall, May 13, 1902
John R. A. Crossland
Title: Minister Resident/Consul General
Appointed: January 16, 1902
Presented credentials: May 13, 1902
Terminated mission: Left post January 30, 1903
Ernest Lyon
Title: Minister Resident/Consul General
Appointed: March 16, 1903
Presented credentials: July 27, 1903
Terminated mission: Probably presented recall on or shortly before August 25, 1910
William D. Crum
Title: Minister Resident/Consul General
Appointed: June 13, 1910
Presented credentials: August 25, 1910
Terminated mission: Left post September 17, 1912
Fred R. MooreTitle: Minister Resident/Consul General
Appointed: March 1, 1913
Presented credentials: Did not proceed to post, did not present credentials
George Washington Buckner – Political appointee
Title: Minister Resident/Consul General
Appointed: September 10, 1913
Presented credentials: December 8, 1913
Terminated mission: Left post April 15, 1915
James L. Curtis – Political appointee
Title: Minister Resident/Consul General
Appointed: October 25, 1915
Presented credentials: December 29, 1915
Terminated mission: Left post October 20, 1917
Joseph J. Johnson – Political appointee
Title: Minister Resident/Consul General
Appointed: August 27, 1918
Presented credentials: October 8, 1919
Terminated mission: Presented recall, February 13, 1922, the day on which his successor presented credentials
Solomon Porter Hood – Political appointee
Title: Minister Resident/Consul General
Appointed: October 26, 1921
Presented credentials: February 13, 1922
Terminated mission: Left post January 9, 1926
President Coolidge appointed James G. Carter (a career FSO) to the office on March 1, 1927, but Carter declined the appointment.
William T. Francis – Political appointee
Title: Minister Resident/Consul General
Appointed: July 9, 1927
Presented credentials: November 30, 1927
Terminated mission: Died at post July 15, 1929
Charles E. Mitchell – Political appointee
Title: Minister Resident/Consul General
Appointed: September 10, 1930
Note: The ministerial post was upgraded to Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary after Mitchell (above) had taken his oath of office but before he proceeded to his post. He was recommissioned with the above title on January 20, 1931.
Charles E. Mitchell – Political appointee
Title: Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary
Appointed: January 20, 1931
Presented credentials: Did not present credentials
Terminated mission: Left post March 22, 1933, the government of Liberia having requested his recall on February 11, 1933.
Lester A. Walton – Political appointee
Title: Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary
Appointed: July 22, 1935
Presented credentials: October 2, 1935
Terminated mission: Left post February 28, 1946
Raphael O'Hara Lanier – Political appointee
Title: Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary
Appointed: February 13, 1946
Presented credentials: July 1, 1946
Terminated mission: Left post June 8, 1948
Edward R. Dudley – Political appointee
Title: Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary
Appointed: August 11, 1948
Presented credentials: October 18, 1948
Terminated mission: Promoted to Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary March 18, 1949
Edward R. Dudley – Political appointee
Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Appointed: March 18, 1949
Presented credentials: May 6, 1949
Terminated mission: Left post June 15, 1953
Jesse D. Locker – Political appointee
Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Appointed: July 22, 1953
Presented credentials: October 16, 1953
Terminated mission: Died at post April 10, 1955
Richard Lee Jones – Political appointee
Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Appointed: May 31, 1955
Presented credentials: June 24, 1955
Terminated mission: Left post July 24, 1959
Elbert G. Mathews – Career FSO
Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Appointed: August 12, 1959
Presented credentials: September 30, 1959
Terminated mission: Left post May 4, 1962
Charles Edward Rhetts – Political appointee
Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Appointed: July 5, 1962
Presented credentials: August 7, 1962
Terminated mission: Left Liberia, September 30, 1964
Ben H. Brown, Jr. – Career FSO
Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Appointed: November 25, 1964
Presented credentials: January 6, 1965
Terminated mission: Left post July 17, 1969
Samuel Z. Westerfield, Jr. – Career FSO
Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Appointed: July 8, 1969
Presented credentials: December 9, 1969
Terminated mission: Died at post July 19, 1972
Melvin L. Manfull – Career FSO
Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Appointed: December 2, 1972
Presented credentials: December 22, 1972
Terminated mission: Left post December 15, 1975
W. Beverly Carter, Jr. – Career FSO
Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Appointed: April 6, 1976
Presented credentials: April 23, 1976
Terminated mission: Left post January 1, 1979
Robert P. Smith – Career FSO
Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Appointed: July 2, 1979
Presented credentials: August 6, 1979
Terminated mission: Left post January 15, 1981
William Lacy Swing – Career FSO
Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Appointed: July 18, 1981
Presented credentials: August 11, 1981
Terminated mission: Left post June 10, 1985
Edward Joseph Perkins – Career FSO
Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Appointed: July 12, 1985
Presented credentials: August 28, 1985
Terminated mission: Left post October 22, 1986
James Keough Bishop – Career FSO
Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Appointed: March 27, 1987
Presented credentials: May 4, 1987
Terminated mission: Left post March 31, 1990
Peter Jon de Vos – Career FSO
Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Appointed: June 22, 1990
Presented credentials: Did not present credentials
Terminated mission: Left post July 27, 1992
Note: From 1992–1999 the following officers served as chargés d’affaires ad interim: William H. Twaddell (September 1992–July 1995), William B. Milam (November 1995–January 1999), and Donald K. Petterson (February 1999–August 1999).
Bismarck Myrick – Career FSO
Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Appointed: July 7, 1999
Presented credentials: August 20, 1999
Terminated mission: Left post July 23, 2002
John William Blaney – Career FSO
Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Appointed: August 8, 2002
Presented credentials: October 3, 2002
Terminated mission: Left post July 13, 2005
Donald E. Booth – Career FSO
Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Appointed: June 21, 2005
Presented credentials: August 9, 2005
Terminated mission: c. August 2008
Linda Thomas-Greenfield – Career FSO
Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Appointed: July 18, 2008
Presented credentials: c. August 2008
Terminated mission: Left post April 2, 2012
Deborah R. Malac – Career FSO
Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Appointed: July 26, 2012
Presented credentials: September 20, 2012
Terminated mission: 2015
Christine A. Elder – Career FSO
Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Appointed: May 17, 2016
Presented credentials: June 23, 2016
Terminated mission: Incumbent
