Davis, C. H. (Charles Henry), 1845-1921

President Roosevelt directs the Department of State to refer to the concluding part of his letter of April 10 regarding documentation of the incident with Governor of Jamaica James Alexander Swettenham. Roosevelt instructs that the reports from those involved, including Admiral Robley D. Evans, Rear Admiral C. H. Davis, Father Mathew Carlin Gleeson, the ship surgeon, and all officers, be readied for publication. At some point, the affair “may see the light,” in Great Britain, and Roosevelt wants “immediately to produce our whole case in answer.”

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-08-24

Creator(s)

Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919

Senator Lodge writes to President Roosevelt about the career implications for Admiral C. H. Davis should Atlantic Fleet Commander Admiral Robley D. Evans retire. Lodge feels that Davis deserves the position more than Admiral Caspar F. Goodrich and that Evans’ actions in Jamaica after the 1907 earthquake should not be held against him. Lodge adds that his sister-in-law’s health continues to deteriorate and that according to the doctors she should have died several days before.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-04-09

Creator(s)

Lodge, Henry Cabot, 1850-1924

Arthur Hamilton Lee returns C. H. Davis’s reports on the Jamaica affair. He apologizes if he held on to them longer than expected but assures William Loeb that he wanted to be sure that the matter had passed before returning them.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-03-30

Creator(s)

Lee of Fareham, Viscount (Arthur Hamilton Lee), 1868-1947

Ambassador Carter, Secretary of the American Embassy in London, thanks President Roosevelt for his letters, and for having his daughter Mildred stay at the White House. Carter discusses the response of the British public and press to the “Jamaica incident.” This likely refers to the inadequate relief provided by British Governor of Jamaica James Alexander Swettenham to Jamaican residents after the Kingston earthquake, and the subsequent intervention by American Rear Admiral C. H. Davis. The reaction in Britain is one of “amazement, indignation, and mortification.” However, Roosevelt’s answers to British Secretary of State for War R. B. Haldane’s and British Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs Edward Grey’s telegrams “had a most soothing effect.” Carter also references an earlier conversation he and Roosevelt had about Swettenham, in connection with the Panama Canal.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-01-25

Creator(s)

Carter, John R. (John Ridgely), 1862-1944

Rear Admiral Evans, Commander-in-Chief of the United States Atlantic Fleet, submits an endorsement of Rear Admiral Davis’ report, and sends it to Secretary of the Navy Metcalf. Evans writes that the report appears to be accurate and wishes to commend Davis for his conduct.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-01-23

Creator(s)

Evans, Robley D. (Robley Dunglison), 1846-1912

Commander Beehler sends news to the Navy Department regarding the locations, needs, and plans of Admiral Charles Henry Davis and Admiral Robley D. Evans and their respective ships.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-01-21

Creator(s)

Beehler, William Henry, 1848-1915

Governor Swettenham of Jamaica thanks Secretary of State Root for the assistance given to Jamaica by Admiral C. H. Davis and the United States Navy after the earthquake.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-01-20

Creator(s)

Swettenham, James Alexander, 1846-1933

Howson W. Cole, Assistant Surgeon for the Navy, reports to Navy Medical Inspector Ames his observations and work concerning the relief effort after the earthquake in Kingston, Jamaica. Cole reports that their offers to help care for the wounded were refused by Dr. Karr at the Central Hospital, although Karr did request some medical supplies. This refusal was despite the clear lack of appropriate medical services for all the injured, and Cole provides case-specific examples. Because of the clear need for more aid, Admiral C. H. Davis set up an American Hospital, where Cole and others saw as many patients as possible. Cole provides details for a number of patient cases, and concludes that no matter what Governor James Alexander Swettenham believes, medical aid is “certainly needed and asked for, by the poor wretches who are even yet without treatment.”

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-01-20

Creator(s)

Cole, Howson W. (Howson White), 1878-1925

Lieutenant Gilmer of the USS Missouri provides a detailed description of the United States naval response to the January 14, 1907, earthquake in Kingston, Jamaica. Gilmer explains that the Navy landed in Kingston on January 17, setting up a hospital, landing forces, and providing aid. Gilmer describes the destruction of the city both from the earthquake and the subsequent looting and the various dead victims he sees and living victims he interacts with. After the governor of Jamaica asked the Navy to leave the island, Gilmer interacts with many who request that the Navy stay and insist they are badly needed. The Navy withdraws on January 19, back to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-01-19

Creator(s)

Gilmer, James B. (James Blair), 1876-1963

Lieutenant Abernathy describes the USS Indiana‘s relief efforts after the Kingston, Jamaica, earthquake: clearing of King Street and Harbor Street, tearing down unsafe walls, searching for survivors, and disposing of victims’ bodies. Abernathy states that his men, including L. Cresap and W. C. Barker, continued their work until Admiral C. H. Davis sent orders to return to their ship. Abernathy also mentions that Mr. Morrison offered all the assistance he could.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-01-18

Creator(s)

Abernathy, Robert A. (Robert Andrew), 1880-1961

Captain Pendleton describes the aftermath of the earthquake in Kingston. Pendleton reports that over 400 people have been killed, including the Cuban Consul, and 400 more are wounded.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-01-17

Creator(s)

Pendleton, Edwin C., 1847-1919

Vice-Consul Orrett confirms there has been an earthquake, followed by a fire, that has destroyed Kingston, Jamaica. Admiral C. H. Davis arrived in the morning offering aid.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-01-17

Creator(s)

Orrett, William H. (William Hitchens), 1858-1921

An unknown assistant for Francis B. Loomis sends a note, presumably to President Roosevelt. Admiral Charles Henry Davis, Jr. will travel directly to France. Davis is to be the United States representative on the international commission investigating the Dogger Bank Incident, in which the Russian navy fired on British fishing boats in the North Sea.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-12-06

Creator(s)

Unknown

Senator Lodge explains a situation reconciling differences of account between “Harry” and Attorney General William H. Moody regarding the Second Battleship Squadron. Moving on to a matter with Augustus Peabody Gardner, which Lodge finds distressing, Lodge explains that he stands by the recommendation of Moody. He believes Roosevelt will carry New York in the upcoming election. Everyone is stressed due to it being the final hours of the campaign.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-11-03

Creator(s)

Lodge, Henry Cabot, 1850-1924

This article includes pictures from President Roosevelt’s naval review of vessels in the United States Navy from September 2, 1906, to September 4, 1906.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-09-09

Creator(s)

Unknown

After discussing the matter with Secretary of the Navy Paul Morton, President Roosevelt wants to offer the position of Arbiter to Rear Admiral C. H. Davis. Morton also suggested Rear Admiral French Ensor Chadwick or Rear Admiral Charles D. Sigsbee, but Roosevelt feels that Davis is the best candidate. If Davis refuses, Roosevelt is inclined to favor Sigsbee, pending the opinion of Secretary of State Hay.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-11-30

Creator(s)

Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919

President Roosevelt sends Secretary of the Navy Metcalf the names of those he wants to appoint to the Naval Academy’s Board of Visitors.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1908-01-17

Creator(s)

Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-04-10

Creator(s)

Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919

Recipient

Root, Elihu, 1845-1937

Publication Date

2025-07-31

President Roosevelt believes Arthur Hamilton Lee handled the “Swettenham matter” efficiently, calling the matter itself a “cosmic incident” and citing others like Swettenham in American Government, most notably General James Harrison Wilson. He was amused by the opinions of John William Burgess, who was awarded the Theodore Roosevelt professorship in at the University of Berlin. While Roosevelt admires some of Burgess’s scholarly accomplishments, he considers Burgess “hopefully wrong-headed” and criticizes his first lecture denouncing the Monroe Doctrine.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-04-08

Creator(s)

Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919

President Roosevelt hopes that Arthur Hamilton Lee is not worrying about the incident between Governor of Jamaica James Alexander Swettenham and Rear Admiral C. H. Davis in the aftermath of the Kingston Earthquake. Roosevelt assures Lee that he has dealt with worse characters than Swettenham, including several former American diplomats.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-02-12

Creator(s)

Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919