Harry Dexter White

Harry Dexter White (October 9, 1892 – August 16, 1948) was an American economist, and a senior U.S. Treasury department official. He was the senior American official at the 1944 Bretton Woods conference, and reportedly dominated the conference and imposed his vision of post-war financial institutions over the objections of John Maynard Keynes, the British representative. After the war, White was a major architect of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank.

In August 1948, White testified and defended his record to the House Un-American Activities Committee. Three days after testifying he died of a heart attack at his summer home in Fitzwilliam, NH. A number of sources, including the FBI and Soviet archives, indicate that he passed secret state information to the Soviet Union during World War II.

Read more about Harry Dexter White:  Early Life, Office of Monetary Research, Treasury Department, Death, Venona Project

Famous quotes containing the words harry and/or white:

    I know what you’re thinking. Did he fire six shots or only five? Well, to tell you the truth, in all this excitement I’ve kinda lost track myself. But being this is a .44 Magnum, the most powerful handgun in the world, and would blow your head clean off—you’ve got to ask yourself one question: Do I feel lucky? Well, do ya, punk?
    Harry Fink, U.S. screenwriter, Rita Fink, U.S. screenwriter, Dean Riesner, U.S. screenwriter, and Don Siegel. Harry Callahan (Clint Eastwood)

    Once in a while, God sends a good white person my way, even to this day. I think it’s God’s way of keeping me from becoming too mean. And when he sends a nice one to me, then I have to eat crow. And honey, crow is a tough old bird to eat, let me tell you.
    Annie Elizabeth Delany (b. 1891)