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John Hay

John Milton Hay (October 8, 1838 – July 1, 1905) was an American statesman and official whose career in government stretched over almost half a century. Beginning as a private secretary and an assistant for Abraham Lincoln, he became a diplomat. He served as United States Secretary of State under Presidents William McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt. Hay was also a biographer of Lincoln, and wrote poetry and other literature throughout his life.

Born in Salem, Indiana to an anti-slavery family that moved to Warsaw, Illinois, Hay showed great potential from an early age, and his family sent him to Brown University. After graduation in 1858, Hay read law in his uncle's office in Springfield, Illinois, adjacent to that of Lincoln. Hay worked for Lincoln's successful presidential campaign and became one of his private secretaries in the White House. Throughout the American Civil War, Hay was close to Lincoln and stood by his deathbed after the President was shot. In addition to his other literary works, Hay co-authored, with John George Nicolay, a ten-volume biography of Lincoln that helped shape the assassinated president's historical image.

After Lincoln's death, Hay spent several years at diplomatic posts in Europe, then worked for the New-York Tribune under Horace Greeley and Whitelaw Reid. Hay remained active in politics, and from 1879 to 1881 served as Assistant Secretary of State. Afterward, he returned to the private sector, remaining there until President McKinley, of whom he had been a major backer, made him the Ambassador to the United Kingdom in 1897. Hay became the Secretary of State the following year.

Hay served for nearly seven years as Secretary of State under President McKinley and, after McKinley's assassination, under Theodore Roosevelt. Hay was responsible for negotiating the Open Door Policy, which kept China open to trade with all countries on an equal basis, with international powers. By negotiating the Hay–Pauncefote Treaty with the United Kingdom, the (ultimately unratified) Hay–Herrán Treaty with Colombia, and finally the Hay–Bunau-Varilla Treaty with the newly independent Republic of Panama, Hay also cleared the way for the building of the Panama Canal.

Birth and Death Data: Born January 1, 1838 (Salem), Died July 1, 1905 (Newbury)

Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1906 - 1919

Roles Represented in DAHR: author

= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.

Recordings

Company Matrix No. Size First Recording Date Title Primary Performer Description Role Audio
Victor B-3266 10-in. 4/11/1906 Jim Bludsoe Edgar L. Davenport Recitation author  
Victor B-3479 10-in. 6/15/1906 Little breeches Edgar L. Davenport Recitation author  
Victor B-17381 10-in. 3/27/1916 When the boys come home Evan Williams Tenor vocal solo, with orchestra author  
Victor B-20694 10-in. 9/24/1917 When the boys come home Ernestine Schumann-Heink Contralto vocal solo, with orchestra author  
Columbia 4915 10-in. approximately 1910 Jim Bludsoe Edgar L. Davenport Dramatic recitation author  
Columbia 77937 10-in. 6/28/1918 When the boys come home Columbia Double Male Quartet Male vocal double quartet, with orchestra author  
Columbia 78082 10-in. 9/26/1918 When the boys come home Columbia Stellar Quartette Male vocal quartet, with orchestra author  
Columbia 78296 10-in. 2/13/1919 When the boys come home Louis Graveure Baritone vocal solo, with orchestra author  
OKeh 123 10-in. approximately Apr. 1918 When the boys come home Henry Burr Male vocal solo, with orchestra author  
Edison 4652 10-in. 4/11/1916 Jim Bludsoe Edgar L. Davenport Recitation author  
Edison 5003 10-in. 9/18/1916 When the boys come home Frederick J. Wheeler Baritone vocal solo, with orchestra author  

Citation

Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Hay, John," accessed March 28, 2024, https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/102649.

Hay, John. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved March 28, 2024, from https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/102649.

"Hay, John." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 28 March 2024.

DAHR Persistent Identifier

URI: https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/102649

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