Sumner Gerard
Sumner Gerard Jr. | |
|---|---|
| Born | July 15, 1916 Melville, New York, U.S. |
| Died | February 24, 2005 (aged 88) Vero Beach, Florida, U.S. |
| Occupation(s) | Entrepreneur, public servant, diplomat, professor |
| Years active | 1940s–2005 |
| Known for | United States Ambassador to Jamaica (1974–1977); Montana state legislator; marine archaeology professor |
Sumner Gerard Jr. (July 15, 1916 – February 24, 2005) was an American entrepreneur, public servant, and diplomat. Originating from a distinguished New York family, Gerard completed his education at Groton School and Trinity College, Cambridge. Following his military service in the Army, Navy, and Marine Corps during World War II, he moved to Montana where he pursued business interests such as mining and ranching while simultaneously engaging in politics.
Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, Gerard held positions in both the Montana House of Representatives and the Montana Senate, serving as the Republican minority leader in each chamber. In 1974, he was appointed by President Richard Nixon as the United States Ambassador to Jamaica, a role he fulfilled under President Gerald Ford until 1977. Subsequently, Gerard relocated to Florida, taking on a role as an adjunct professor of marine archaeology at the University of Miami, where he also supported underwater archaeological projects. He died in 2005 in Vero Beach, Florida, aged 88.
Early life and education
Born in Melville, New York, a community within the town of Huntington on Long Island, Gerard was the son of Sumner Gerard and Helen Coster and had two brothers.[1][2][3] His paternal lineage traced back to French Huguenots who settled in New York in 1776 after residing in Scotland.[3] Among his notable ancestors were Increase Sumner, who served as Governor of Massachusetts, and James W. Gerard, U.S. Ambassador to Germany during World War I.[3] The family established a reputation in business, law, and politics.[3][4] The Gerard family name is commemorated by Gerard Avenue in The Bronx.[1] They were adherents of the Episcopal Church.[4][5]
Gerard completed his secondary education at the esteemed Groton School in Groton before earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1937 and a Master of Arts degree in 1939 from Trinity College, Cambridge.[1][2][4][5]
World War II service
During the course of World War II, Gerard served across multiple branches of the U.S. military including the Army, Navy, and Marine Corps.[1][5][6] He began his military career as a private within the Army Air Corps and rose to the rank of infantry captain specializing in intelligence within the Marine Corps over four years.[1][6] His assignments took him to regions such as the Middle East, North Africa, Washington D.C., China, Burma, and California.[2][6] In 1942, he was part of a delegation accompanying Winston Churchill on a flight to Moscow for talks with Joseph Stalin.[2] For his service, Gerard received both the Army Commendation Medal and was honored with the Order of the British Empire.[6]
Montana
Following World War II, Gerard became involved with his family's real estate firm, Aeon Realty Company, which managed properties across Manhattan, Long Island, and New Jersey. Seeking new prospects out west, he studied ranching practices and toured several western states in 1947 before acquiring the Bar 7 Ranch near Ennis, Montana in 1948. He moved there with his family in 1949 and managed the ranch as both a home base and livestock operation focused on cattle and horses. Additionally, he owned another ranch near Dillon, Montana. Despite these enterprises, the ranch did not generate profits; Gerard depended on financial assistance from his father—including monetary support and stock holdings—to handle substantial debts.
This familial financial aid allowed Gerard to sustain a comfortable standard of living by covering ranch expenses, funding his children’s education, and supporting private aviation costs. Besides ranching activities, he maintained business interests in Billings and Bozeman and held executive roles including mining executive at Newmont Resources and director at Cardinal Petroleum—both companies headquartered in Billings.
Politics
Following his relocation to Montana, Gerard became involved in the state's political scene. In 1954, he secured election as a Republican representative for Madison County in the Montana Legislature, commencing his service in 1955. Over the course of three terms in the House of Representatives, he held the position of minority leader between 1959 and 1961.
Gerard declared his candidacy for the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate on December 17, 1959, advocating for Montana to embrace progressive policies. Despite his efforts, he placed second in a six-candidate Republican primary, garnering 27% of votes; Orvin B. Fjare claimed the nomination with 39%. His campaign expenditures totaled $20,000, partially supported by his father’s contributions. Some observers attributed his defeat to doubts about his genuine Montana roots.
In 1962, Gerard won the Republican nomination for the Montana Senate representing Madison County and subsequently triumphed in the general election. He served as a state senator from 1962 until 1966 and was minority leader during 1965–1966.
Diplomat
Gerard departed Montana in 1969 to embark on a diplomatic path, initially relocating to New Jersey. Under President Nixon’s administration, he was appointed as a delegate to the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization based in Rome. In 1970, he assumed the role of mission director for the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in Tunisia, a post he held until 1974. On March 22, 1974, President Nixon named him U.S. Ambassador to Jamaica; Gerard continued serving through the Ford administration and into the early years of Carter’s presidency before concluding his tenure in 1977.
Later career
Following his ambassadorial duties, Gerard moved from New Jersey to Florida. There, he became a prominent supporter of marine biology research and sponsored expeditions focused on underwater archaeology. In 1977, he was appointed adjunct professor specializing in maritime archaeology at the University of Miami.
Personal life
Gerard was married twice: his first marriage was to Louise Taft Grosvenor in 1944, with whom he had five children—Jenny, Molly, Helen, Anne, and Sumner—before their divorce in 1966; later, he wed Teresa Dabrowska from Warsaw during the 1960s, ending in divorce in 2004. He passed away due to natural causes on February 24, 2005, in Vero Beach, Florida. Commemorative services took place at both the Smithsonian Marine Station in Fort Pierce and St. Thomas Episcopal Church in Manhattan.
See also
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