Francis Butler Loomis
25th United States Assistant Secretary of State
In office January 7, 1903 – October 10, 1905
President	Theodore Roosevelt
Preceded by	David Jayne Hill
Succeeded by	Robert Bacon
Personal details
Born	July 27, 1861 Marietta, Ohio, U.S.
Died	August 4, 1948 (aged 87) San Francisco, California, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Alma mater	Marietta College
Profession	Journalist,Editor,Politician

Francis Butler Loomis (July 27, 1861 – August 4, 1948) served as theUnited States Ambassador to Venezuela from 1897 to 1901 and theUnited States Ambassador to Portugal from 1901 to 1902. He was theUnited States Assistant Secretary of State from 1903 to 1905 when he was appointed as the actingUnited States Secretary of State. His son was Major generalFrancis B. Loomis Jr.

He was born on July 27, 1861.

He began his career as a newspaperman in his hometown ofMarietta, Ohio, editing theMarietta Leader while a student atMarietta College. A year following his graduation in 1883, Loomis became a reporter for theNew York Tribune and later assumed a campaign press relations position. He returned toOhio to serve as state librarian for two years (from 1885 to 1887).

It was during the administration ofPresidentBenjamin Harrison that Loomis first entered government service as consul atSaint-Étienne, and atGrenoble, France, until 1893. For the next three years from 1893 to 1896, Loomis returned briefly to journalism as editor of theCincinnati Daily Tribune. PresidentWilliam McKinley appointed himAmbassador to Venezuela in 1897 and toPortugal in 1901.

A year later, he was recalled toWashington, DC, and was appointedAssistant Secretary of State. On the death of SecretaryJohn Hay, he served as actingSecretary of State briefly in 1905. During his State Department tenure, he became associated with the reorganization of theAmerican Red Cross, serving as a charter member. His commissions included final negotiations which resulted in the acquisition of thePanama Canal Zone, service as special ambassador toFrance to receive the body ofJohn Paul Jones and Special Envoy Extraordinary toJapan, arranging the visit of the U.S. fleet to that country in 1908. Shortly beforeWorld War I Loomis returned to private business as foreign trade adviser to theStandard Oil Company serving until retirement.

He died on August 4, 1948, in theSan Francisco Bay area inCalifornia.

Wikimedia Commons has media related toFrancis B. Loomis.

• Biography at Marietta College
• Guide to the Francis Butler Loomis Papers: microfilm, 1897–1939

• 1861 births
• 1948 deaths
• 19th-century American diplomats
• 20th-century American diplomats
• Politicians from Marietta, Ohio
• United States assistant secretaries of state
• Ambassadors of the United States to Venezuela
• American newspaper editors
• American male journalists
• American newspaper reporters and correspondents
• New-York Tribune people
• Ambassadors of the United States to Portugal
• Journalists from Ohio
• Acting United States secretaries of state

• Articles with short description
• Short description matches Wikidata
• Commons category link from Wikidata