Myron Charles Taylor

Myron Charles Taylor (January 18, 1874 – May 5, 1959) was an American industrialist, and later a diplomat involved in many of the most important geopolitical events during and after World War II.[1] He moved into the textile and mail delivery business and, according to the Finger Lakes Times, invented the transparent "window" in envelopes through which an address is displayed.[4] With his now-sizable fortune he could have retired, but at the urging of two leading Wall Street bankers (J. P. Morgan, Jr. and George F. Baker), Taylor was recruited to help turn around the finances of U.S. Steel.During the Great Depression, he applied the "Taylor Formula" again — closing or selling plants; reorganizing the corporate structure; and upgrading and modernizing the company's operations and technology.One defining moment occurred in 1937, when Taylor struck a deal with labor leader John L. Lewis who, at the time, was head of the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO).[7] In July 1938 he represented the U.S. at the Évian Conference in Évian-les-Bains, France, which convened at the initiative of U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt to discuss the issue of increasing numbers of Jewish refugees fleeing Nazi persecution leading up to the onset of World War II.Before German Nazi leader Adolf Hitler turned to mass extermination of Jews by way of The Holocaust, the possibility of having refugees sent to willing countries was posed.[14] Taylor left Rome on September 22, 1941, flying to Lisbon and London on the way back to the U.S.[15][16] Initially he was ordered to work to prevent Italy from joining the war with Germany.Later he would be influential in urging limited bombing of Rome in 1943–1944 by the Allies of World War II, and then only of specific military targets, in order to preserve the cultural resources of the ancient city.Given the rising tensions, he was required to move into Vatican City on December 13, 1941, after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor and the US entered World War II against the Axis Powers.Taylor's country home in Locust Valley, New York, was situated on the site of a farm started by an English colonial ancestor, Captain John Underhill.Truman paid tribute noting, "The Honorable Myron C. Taylor performed great services for both me and my predecessor in the White House to the Vatican at a time when it was essential that the United States be represented in that quarter.
Myron Taylor addresses the Évian Conference
Taylor's former residence in Washington, D.C.
Myron Taylor Hall at Cornell Law School
Calumet (ship, 1929)New YorkNew York CityLocust Valley CemeteryLocust Valley, New YorkCornell UniversityDiplomacyfinanceindustrialismphilanthropyindustrialistgeopoliticalalma materLyons, New YorktanneryCornell Law SchoolNew York State AssemblyDemocratWall Streetcorporate lawU.S. government contracttransparent "window" in envelopes through which an address is displayedcottoncotton millsautomotive industrytextileWorld War IAmerican militaryboom-bust cycleJ. P. Morgan, Jr.George F. Bakercorporationcommitteechairmanchief executive officerGreat DepressionJohn L. LewisCongress of Industrial OrganizationsFortuneBusiness WeekThe New YorkerThe Saturday Evening Postlake freightersWashington, D.C.Évian ConferenceÉvian-les-BainsFranceU.S. PresidentFranklin D. RooseveltJewish refugeespersecutionGermanAdolf Hitlermass exterminationThe HolocaustrefugeesSumner WellesU.S. Under Secretary of StateForeign relations of Pope Pius XIIPope Pius XIIHarry S. TrumanambassadorHoly SeeProtestantChristianMethodistsPresbyteriansLutheransBaptistsSeventh-day AdventistsVaticanLisbonLondonbombing of Rome in 1943–1944Allies of World War IIHarold H. Tittmann Jr.chargé d'affairesVatican Citymilitary airbaseEuropelake freighterMyron C. TaylorMedal for MeritOrder of Pope Pius IXLocust ValleycolonialCaptain John UnderhillfaçadeHarrie T. LindebergUnderhill Burying GroundendowmentlibrarybuffetluncheonLivingston FarrandinterdenominationalCharles Evans HughesThe Metropolitan Museum of ArtstatuetteAnubisembalmerPtolemaic PeriodPierre-Auguste RenoirUnited States Ambassador to the Holy SeeUnited States SteelboatnerdThe New York TimesTime Magazine20th Century Press ArchivesJ.P. Morgan Jr.U.S. SteelEdward Stettinius Jr.