Alanson B. Houghton

Alanson Bigelow Houghton ( born October 10, 1863 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, † September 15, 1941 in South Dartmouth, Massachusetts ) was an American businessman, politician and diplomat.

Life and career

Born in Cambridge in 1868, he moved with his parents to Corning. After attending various schools, he studied at Harvard University in his hometown and later in Berlin, Göttingen and Paris. He then joined the family business in 1889 in Corning Glass Works a. Between 1902 and 1912 he was vice president of Corning Glass Works and 1912-1918 president of the company. Under his leadership, the company is one of the largest glass manufacturers in the USA. In addition, he was also vice president of Ephraim Coal and Coke Co. in West Virginia and Director of Metropolitan Life Insurance Co. in New York. He was a member of the board of trustees of two colleges in New York State.

Politics and diplomacy

Houghton was a member of the Republican Party. Between 1919 and 1922 he was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives for the state of New York. He also served as a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee.

Of 10 February 1922, he was Ambassador of the United States in Germany. This office he retained until April 6, 1925. Relations with Gustav Stresemann was amicable. After that he was in the UK to 1929 Ambassador. In 1928, Houghton ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. Senate. He was defeated by Democratic incumbent Royal S. Copeland with only 50,000 votes residue, corresponding to a difference of 1.1 percentage points.

His son Amory was also a diplomat and served as U.S. ambassador to France. His son, Amo entered again as a politician in the footsteps of his grandfather and was from 1987 to 2005 the U.S. House of Representatives as a representative of New York at.