John
Callan O'Laughlin
John
Callan O'Laughlin (1873-1949) was a journalist and
long-time publisher of the Army and Navy Journal with
important connections to the political and military
establishment in Washington from 1920 until his death.
These connections informed O'Laughlin's writing on
foreign and military policy. O'Laughlin became a trusted
friend of Herbert Hoover, writing lengthy, insightful
letters to him on politics and world affairs. In fact,
Hoover relied on O'Laughlin for information and advice,
especially after his presidency.
O'Laughlin began his career as a journalist, writing
for the Washington bureau of the New York Herald from
1893 to 1902. After a short stint on the AP European
staff, O'Laughlin worked for the Chicago Tribune and
later the Chicago Herald until World War I. In January
1918 he was commissioned a major in the U.S. Army,
serving as aide to Major General Goethals. During
these years, O'Laughlin wrote his first book, From
the Jungle through Europe with Roosevelt (1910). After
the war, O'Laughlin established the Army and Navy
Journal, a weekly covering the American Military and
world affairs.
O'Laughlin's political connections extended from Theodore
Roosevelt to Harry Truman, and covered the philosophical
spectrum from Herbert Hoover to Eleanor Roosevelt.
He was a delegate at Roosevelt's Bull Moose convention
in 1912, and later served on the Republican National
Committee. After World War II, Hoover hoped to influence
the European Recovery Program using O'Laughlin as
his agent. These hopes went largely unfulfilled a
Marshall and Truman went their own way in shaping
post-war Europe.
O'Laughlin died March 14, 1949. He is buried in Arlington
National Cemetery. An extensive collection of his
papers is held by the Library of Congress. For more
information see: Who's Who in America, 1945-1950,
p. 404 and Gary Dean Best's Herbert Hoover: The Post-Presidential
Years, pp. 302-324.
