United States Ambassador to Togo

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David B. Dunn, current U.S. Ambassador to Togo

Togoland was a German protectorate in West Africa from 1884 to 1914. The protectorate was established in 1884 when the German commissioner signed a treaty with the local chief, in which Germany declared a protectorate over a stretch of territory along the coast of the Bight of Benin.

In 1914 at the outbreak of The Great War, French and British forces invaded the colony and occupied the capital Lomé. In 1916 Togoland was divided into French and British administrative zones. Following the war, Togoland formally became a League of Nations mandate, divided for administrative purposes into French Togoland and British Togoland.

After World War II, the mandate became a United Nations trust territory administered by the United Kingdom and France. During the mandate and trusteeship periods, western Togo was administered as part of the British Gold Coast (now Ghana). In 1957, the residents of British Togoland voted to join the Gold Coast as part of the new independent nation of Ghana.

In 1955, French Togo became the autonomous Republic of Togo within the French union, although it retained its UN trusteeship status. In 1960 Togo severed its constitutional ties with France, shed its UN trusteeship status, and became fully independent.

The United States immediately recognized Togo and moved to establish diplomatic relations. The State Department established an embassy in Yaoundé in nearby Cameroon on January 1, 1960, with Bolard More as Chargé d’Affaires ad interim. The Yaoundé embassy was simultaneously accredited to Togo. The embassy in Lomé was established on April 27, 1960, with Jesse M. MacKnight as Chargé d’Affaires ad interim. On June 23, 1960, Leland Barrows was appointed as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Cameroon with separate accreditation to Togo while remaining resident in Yaoundé. He presented his credentials to the government of Togo on August 22, 1960. In 1961 a separate ambassador was appointed solely for Togo and resident at Lomé. The United States has maintained diplomatic relations with Togo since that date.

Note: The United States Department of State classifies ambassadors as career Foreign Service Officers (FSO) for those who have served in the Foreign Service for a specified amount of time. In the list below, ambassadors are listed as a “career FSO” or “political appointee” for those appointed by the President who were not career FSOs.

[edit] Ambassadors

Diplomatic Terms

Career FSO: After 1915, The United States Department of State began classifying ambassadors as career Foreign Service Officers (FSO) for those who have served in the Foreign Service for a specified amount of time.

Political appointee: A person who is not a career foreign service officer, but is appointed by the president; often to reward political friends.

Appointed: The date that the ambassador took the oath of office—also called “commissioning.” This follows confirmation of a presidential appointment by the Senate, or a congressional-recess appointment by the president. In the case of a recess appointment, the ambassador must be later confirmed by the Senate.

Presented Credentials: The date that the ambassador presented his letter of credence to the head of state or appropriate authority of the receiving nation. At this time the ambassador officially becomes the representative of his country. This would normally occur a short time after the ambassador’s arrival on station. The host nation may reject the ambassador by not receiving the ambassador’s letter, but this occurs only rarely.

Terminated mission: Usually the date that the ambassador left the country. In some cases a letter of recall is presented, ending the ambassador’s commission, either as a means of diplomatic protest or because the diplomat is being reassigned elsewhere and replaced by another envoy.

Chargé d’affaires: The person in charge of the business of the embassy when there is no ambassador commissioned to the host country. See chargé d’affaires.

ad interim: For the time being; in the meantime. See ad interim.

Leland Barrows^[1]^[2] – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: June 23, 1960
- Presented credentials: August 22, 1960
- Terminated mission: Superseded by ambassador to Togo June 27, 1961
Leon B. Poullada – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: April 18, 1961
- Presented credentials: July 27, 1961
- Terminated mission: Left post February 24, 1964
William Witman II – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: June 8, 1964
- Presented credentials: July 10, 1964
- Terminated mission: Left post May 8, 1967
Albert W. Sherer, Jr.^[3]^[4]^[5] – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: September 13, 1967
- Presented credentials: October 13, 1967
- Terminated mission: Left post March 5, 1970
Dwight Dickinson – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: September 8, 1970
- Presented credentials: October 8, 1970
- Terminated mission: Left post April 3, 1974
Nancy V. Rawls – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: February 11, 1974
- Presented credentials: June 7, 1974
- Terminated mission: Left post August 8, 1976
Ronald D. Palmer – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: September 16, 1976
- Presented credentials: October 28, 1976
- Terminated mission: Left post July 15, 1978
Marilyn P. Johnson – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: September 23, 1978
- Presented credentials: November 3, 1978
- Terminated mission: Left post July 29, 1981
Howard Kent Walker – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: March 9, 1982
- Presented credentials: April 19, 1982
- Terminated mission: Left post June 9, 1984
Owen W. Roberts – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: June 28, 1984
- Presented credentials: July 31, 1984
- Terminated mission: Left post July 5, 1986
David A. Korn – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: October 16, 1986
- Presented credentials: November 4, 1986
- Terminated mission: Left post April 4, 1988
Rush Walker Taylor, Jr. – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: April 28, 1988
- Presented credentials: June 20, 1988
- Terminated mission: Left post September 4, 1990
Harmon Elwood Kirby – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: October 22, 1990
- Presented credentials: December 3, 1990
- Terminated mission: Left post July 16, 1994
Johnny Young – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: May 9, 1994
- Presented credentials: October 7, 1994
- Terminated mission: Left post November 21, 1997
Brenda Schoonover – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: November 11, 1997
- Presented credentials: January 7, 1998
- Terminated mission: Left post July 30, 2000
Karl William Hofmann – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: September 15, 2000
- Presented credentials: October 17, 2000
- Terminated mission: Left post December 14, 2002
Gregory W. Engle – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: April 16, 2003
- Presented credentials: May 22, 2003
- Terminated mission: Left post April 1, 2005
David B. Dunn – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: November 2, 2005
- Presented credentials: Unknown
- Terminated mission: Incumbent

[edit] Notes

^ Barrows was accredited to Cameroon and Togo, while resident in Yaoundé.
^ Barrows’ commission to Togo was superseded by appointment of an ambassador to Togo.
^ Sherer was commissioned during a recess of the Senate. He was renominated January 31, confirmed February 7, 1969, and recommissioned after confirmation. A nomination of Jan 9, 1969, was withdrawn before the Senate acted upon it.
^ Sherer was also accredited to Equatorial Guinea
^ During Sherer’s tenure as non-resident Ambassador to Equatorial Guinea, the Embassy in Santa Isabel (now Malabo) was opened August 1, 1969, with Albert N. Williams as Chargé d’Affaires ad interim.