Frederick B. Dent

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Frederick B. Dent
FrederickBailyDent.jpg
5th United States Trade Representative
In office
March 26, 1975 – January 20, 1977
PresidentGerald Ford
Preceded byWilliam Denman Eberle
Succeeded byRobert S. Strauss
21st United States Secretary of Commerce
In office
February 2, 1973 – March 26, 1975
PresidentRichard Nixon
Gerald Ford
Preceded byPeter George Peterson
Succeeded byRogers Morton
Personal details
Born
Frederick Baily Dent

(1922-08-17)August 17, 1922
Cape May, New Jersey, U.S.
DiedDecember 10, 2019(2019-12-10) (aged 97)
Spartanburg, South Carolina, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse(s)
Millie Carrington Harrison
​
​
(m. 1944; died 1997)​
Children5
EducationYale University (BA)
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch/service United States Navy
Years of service1943–1946
RankUS-O2 insignia.svg Lieutenant Junior Grade
Battles/warsWorld War II

Frederick Baily Dent (August 17, 1922 – December 10, 2019) was an American businessman who served as the United States Secretary of Commerce from February 2, 1973, to March 26, 1975, during the administrations of U.S. Presidents Richard M. Nixon and Gerald R. Ford, Jr.[1] His assistant secretary, , a native of Aiken, South Carolina, became a political consultant and in 1978 the publisher of The Southern Political Report.[2]

Dent served as the United States Trade Representative from March 26, 1975, until January 20, 1977, during the remainder of President Ford's administration.

Early life and career[]

Dent was born on August 17, 1922, in Cape May, New Jersey, to Edith (née Baily) and Magruder Dent. He was raised in Greenwich, Connecticut, and attended St. Paul's School[3][4] followed by Yale University, where he lettered in football. Dent was an officer in the Navy's ROTC program at Yale.

Dent served in the United States Navy from 1943 until 1946. In the Navy, Dent was the Lieutenant Junior Grade, where he captained the sub chaser USS PC 1547 and the patrol craft USS PCE(C) 873. He saw action in the Pacific where his patrol craft ferried troops to beachheads, including Okinawa, Japan, in the final stages of World War II. From 1958 until 1972 and 1977 until 1988, Dent was the president of Mayfair Mills in Arcadia, South Carolina.

He was appointed Secretary of Commerce by President Richard Nixon, serving from February 2, 1973, to March 26, 1975, and was President Gerald Ford's Trade Representative, from March 26, 1975, to January 20, 1977.

He was inducted into the South Carolina Business Hall of Fame in 1994.

Personal life[]

On March 11, 1944, Dent married Mildred "Millie" Carrington Harrison. They had five children, Frederick Baily "Rick", Jr., Mildred Dent Hutchinson, Diana Dent Gwynn, Pauline Harrison "Polly" Dent and Magruder Harrison "Mark" Dent. He resided in Spartanburg, South Carolina.

Dent died on December 10, 2019, at the age of 97.[5]

References[]

  1. ^ "Frederick Baily Dent, 1922 - twenty-first Secretary of Commerce". NOAA Photo Library. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved 19 May 2012.
  2. ^ "Hastings Wyman" (PDF). library.sc.edu. Retrieved May 4, 2014.
  3. ^ "Frederick B. Dent (1974–1975)". Archived from the original on 2019-12-17. Retrieved 2019-12-16.
  4. ^ "Frederick B. Dent". NNDB. Retrieved October 22, 2018.
  5. ^ "Frederick B. Dent, Commerce Secretary Under Nixon, Dies at 97". Archived from the original on 2019-12-17.

External links[]

Political offices
Preceded by
Pete Peterson 		United States Secretary of Commerce
1973–1975 		Succeeded by
Rogers Morton
Preceded by
William Eberle 		United States Trade Representative
1975–1977 		Succeeded by
Robert Strauss


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