# James Cabell Bruce > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/James_Cabell_Bruce > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/James_Cabell_Bruce.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Cabell_Bruce > Source revision: 1344906248 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) American diplomat and businessman (1892-1980) His Excellency James Cabell Bruce 29th United States Ambassador to Argentina In office July 12, 1947 – August 20, 1949 Appointed by Harry S. Truman Preceded by George S. Messersmith Succeeded by Stanton Griffis Personal details Born (1892-12-23)December 23, 1892 Baltimore, Maryland, U.S. Died July 17, 1980(1980-07-17) (aged 87) New York City, New York, U.S. Spouse Ellen McHenry Keyser ​ ​ (m. 1919; died 1980)​ Relations David K. E. Bruce (brother) Thomas Nelson Page (uncle) Children 2 Parent(s) William Cabell Bruce Louise Este Fisher Education Gilman School Alma mater Princeton University University of Maryland **James Cabell Bruce** (December 23, 1892 – July 17, 1980) was a 20th-century American businessman and banker in New York City and Baltimore, who served as U.S. ambassador to Argentina in the 1940s.[1][2] ## Background James Cabell Bruce was born on December 23, 1892, in Baltimore, Maryland, son of [William Cabell Bruce](/source/William_Cabell_Bruce) (a lawyer, author, and U. S. Senator) and Louise Este Fisher and brother of [David K. E. Bruce](/source/David_K._E._Bruce).[1] He studied at the [Gilman School](/source/Gilman_School) in Baltimore. He attended [Princeton University](/source/Princeton_University), from which he graduated in 1914 with a BA in literature. In 1918, Bruce received a law degree from the [University of Maryland, Baltimore](/source/University_of_Maryland%2C_Baltimore).[1] ## Career In 1915, Bruce trained with the U.S. Army at [Plattsburgh, New York](/source/Plattsburgh%2C_New_York). In 1916, he worked in Rome as secretary to [U.S. Ambassador to Italy](/source/U.S._Ambassador_to_Italy) (and uncle) [Thomas Nelson Page](/source/Thomas_Nelson_Page). In 1917, he enlisted in the U. S. Army. He served in France and Germany, then took time off to complete his law degree. In 1919, he served as a military attache at the U.S. Embassy in Rome. From there, he traveled to the Balkans to investigate Albania and Montenegro for the [Paris Peace Conference](/source/Paris_Peace_Conference%2C_1919).[1] In 1919, Bruce worked for the Mercantile Trust Bank of Baltimore and for the Atlantic Trust Company. In 1926, Bruce moved to New York, where he worked for banks including Chase National. In 1931, he moved back to Baltimore as president of the Baltimore Trust Company.[1] In 1933, he became financial advisor to the Homeowners Loan Corporation in Washington, DC.[1] In 1934, he became vice president of the [National Dairy Products Corporation](/source/National_Dairy_Products_Corporation).[1] He also became a director of several large businesses, including: [American Airlines](/source/American_Airlines), the Maryland Casualty Company, [Republic Steel](/source/Republic_Steel), the [American Shipbuilding Company](/source/American_Shipbuilding_Company), and Lowe's Theatres.[1] ### U.S. Ambassador to Argentina In 1947, Bruce became U.S. ambassador to Argentina. He returned to the U.S. to campaign for [President Truman](/source/Harry_S._Truman). In 1949, Bruce resigned so he could become U.S. ambassador to Great Britain. However, Truman withdrew his offer, since brother David Bruce was already in line as U.S. ambassador to France. Instead, he became director of the [Mutual Defense Assistance Program](/source/Mutual_Defense_Assistance_Program), a forerunner of [NATO](/source/NATO).[1] While ambassador, Bruce received a letter from attorney [William L. Marbury, Jr.](/source/William_L._Marbury%2C_Jr.), dated December 28, 1948. In the letter, Marbury states, "there have been new developments in this case which would put to shame any respectable author of a detective story." The letter formed part of correspondence: "this case" refers to the case of [Alger Hiss](/source/Alger_Hiss) (Marbury's client).[3]). Diplomatic posts Preceded by George S. Messersmith United States Ambassador to Argentina 1947–1949 Succeeded by Stanton Griffis ### Later life In 1950, Bruce returned to business. His 1958 bid for United States Senate failed.[1] ## Personal and death On May 24, 1919, Bruce married Ellen McHenry Keyser. They had two daughters: Ellen (1920-1998) and Louise (1924-2013).[1] He died on July 17, 1980, in New York City; his wife had preceded him on February 5, 1980.[1] ## Works - *College Journalism* with [James Forrestal](/source/James_Forrestal) (1914)[4] - *Those Perplexing Argentines* (New York: Longmans, Green, 1953)[5] - *Memoirs* (Baltimore: Gateway Press, 2004)[2] ## See also - [United States Ambassador to Argentina](/source/United_States_Ambassador_to_Argentina) - [William Cabell Bruce](/source/William_Cabell_Bruce) - [David K. E. Bruce](/source/David_K._E._Bruce) ## References 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-UMDarchives_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-UMDarchives_1-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-UMDarchives_1-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-UMDarchives_1-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-UMDarchives_1-4) [***f***](#cite_ref-UMDarchives_1-5) [***g***](#cite_ref-UMDarchives_1-6) [***h***](#cite_ref-UMDarchives_1-7) [***i***](#cite_ref-UMDarchives_1-8) [***j***](#cite_ref-UMDarchives_1-9) [***k***](#cite_ref-UMDarchives_1-10) [***l***](#cite_ref-UMDarchives_1-11) ["James Bruce papers"](https://web.archive.org/web/20120623013503/http://digital.lib.umd.edu/archivesum/actions.DisplayEADDoc.do?source=MdU.ead.histms.0065.xml&style=ead). [University of Maryland](/source/University_of_Maryland%2C_Baltimore). July 27, 1977. Archived from [the original](http://digital.lib.umd.edu/archivesum/actions.DisplayEADDoc.do?source=MdU.ead.histms.0065.xml&style=ead) on June 23, 2012. Retrieved February 21, 2017. 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-memoirs_2-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-memoirs_2-1) Bruce, James Cabell (1975). *Memoirs*. Gateway Press. [LCCN](/source/LCCN_(identifier)) [75013821](https://lccn.loc.gov/75013821). 1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** [Marbury, Jr., William L.](/source/William_L._Marbury%2C_Jr.) (December 28, 1948). ["Personal letter to the Honorable James Bruce"](http://www.mdhs.org/findingaid/alger-hiss-collection-1934-1979-ms-2504). Maryland Historical Society. Retrieved February 16, 2017. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** Bruce, James; Forrestal, V. James (1914). *College Journalism*. Princeton University Press. [LCCN](/source/LCCN_(identifier)) [15012870](https://lccn.loc.gov/15012870). 1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** Bruce, James (1953). *Those Perplexing Argentines*. Longmans, Green. [LCCN](/source/LCCN_(identifier)) [53010840](https://lccn.loc.gov/53010840). ## External links - [James Cabell Bruce](https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/84648534) at [Find a Grave](/source/Find_a_Grave) v t e United States ambassadors to Argentina Chargé d'Affaires Rodney Forbes Baylies Brent Harris Pendleton Minister Resident Peden Yancey Cushman Palmer Kirk Asboth Worthington Kirk White Osborn Hanna Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary Hanna Pitkin Buchanan Lord Barrett Beaupre Eddy Sherrill Garrett Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Stimson Riddle Jay Bliss Weddell Armour Braden Messersmith Bruce Griffis Bunker Nufer Beaulac Rubottom McClintock Martin Burgess Lodge Hill Castro Shlaudeman Ortiz Gildred Todman Cheek Godard (a.i.) Rocha (a.i.) Walsh Gutierrez Wayne Martínez Mamet Prado Carlson (a.i.) Stanley Lamelas Authority control databases International ISNI VIAF FAST WorldCat National United States Netherlands Greece Israel Academics CiNii People Trove Other IdRef Open Library NARA SNAC Yale LUX --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [James Cabell Bruce](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Cabell_Bruce) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Cabell_Bruce?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.