William F. Whiting - Businessman and Politician

Businessman and Politician

Whiting was the son of Massachusetts politician and businessman William Whiting and Anna Marin Fairfield Whiting. He attended Amherst College and graduated in the class of 1896 alongside future Secretary of State Robert Lansing.

When Whiting's father, who organized the Whiting Paper Company, became president of that business, William Fairfield Whiting became treasure. When his father died William F. Whiting became president of the Whiting Paper Company and his brother Samuel Raynor Whiting became treasurer. He became a lifelong friend of future President Coolidge when Coolidge was mayor of Northampton, Massachusetts. Later, Whiting and Frank Stearns were the first two "Coolidge Men" who advocated their friend as a serious Presidential candidate. At the 1920 Republic Nominating Convention, Whting voted for Coolidge for President on every ballot, the sole delegate to do so after Warren Harding had sewed up the votes to win the nomination.

Whiting's appointment by President Coolidge to succeed Herbert Hoover surprised the Washington establishment, which had expected the position to be filled by Hoover's preferred candidate, Dr. Julius Klein, the director of the Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce. Former Senator William Butler of Massachusetts turned down the post before Coolidge offered it to Whiting. His appointment was confirmed by the United States Senate on December 11, 1928

During his first press interview after his appointent, Whiting stated, "My policies will be Mr. Hoover's policies." As Secretary, he headed President Coolidge's delegation to the International Conference on Civil Aeronatics