William Henry Draper Jr. (August 10 1894 - December 26 1974) was a U.S. army officer, banker, and diplomat.

Born in Harlem, Manhattan and received a B.A. and M.A. in economics at New York University.

Joined the United States Army soon after finishing college and served during World War I as a Major in the Infantry. After the war he stayed in the Army Reserves working his way up to Chief of Staff of the 77th Division (1936-1940), while going to work in New York City for National City Bank (1919-1921), Bankers Trust Company (1923-1927), and then Dillon, Read and Company (1927-1953) becoming Vice President in 1937.

At the invitation of George Marshall he moved to Washington, DC to serve on the President's Advisory Committee for Selective Service receiving a promotion to Colonel (May 15 1940).

At the start of Word War II he took command of the 136th Infantry, 33rd Division, National Guard (1942-1944). With the end of the war, a promotion to Brigadier-General (January 1 1945) and a move to Berlin to serve as Chief of the Economics Division, Allied Control Council for Germany (1945-1947).

After a promotion to Major-General, Draper was asked by the new Secretary of War Kenneth C. Royall to become his Under Secretary of War (August 29 1947). With the transition of the Department of War to the Department of the Army, Draper became the first Under Secretary of the Army (September 18 1947-February 28 1949)

After retiring in 1949 he was asked to return to public service by the Truman administration, moving to Paris to serve as the first U.S. ambassador to NATO (December 1951 and June 1953).

After retiring from public service a second time he travelled to Mexico to serve as the Chairman of Mexican Light and Power Company (1954-1959).

Returning to the US in 1959 he formed the first west coast venture capital firm Draper, Gaither and Anderson in California with the man who served as his deputy and replacement at NATO, Frederick L. Anderson .

In 1967 he retired from Draper, Gaither and Anderson, moved to Washington, DC and joined Combustion Engineering in New York as Chairman, retiring a few years later to become the U.S. member of the United Nations Population Commission (1969-1971).

External link

Oral History Interview with General William H. Draper Jr.