Emmerson, John K., March 16, 1980

John K. Emmerson (1908-1984) was born in Canon City, Colorado. He received his B.A. from Colorado College, a M.A. from New York University, and studied at Georgetown University for the Foreign Service examinations. Emmerson served in Japan before WWII and later as a Foreign Service officer in Japan and Northeast Asia. During the Occupation, Emmerson was a political advisor to General Douglas MacArthur with the Political Advisor’s Office (POLAD). He returned to the U.S. in 1946 but was later sent back to Japan by President Kennedy to act as deputy to Ambassador Reischauer in 1962. He wrote a book, The Japanese Thread: A Life in the U.S. Foreign Service, which details his career as a diplomat. It received the David D. Lloyd prize for the best book on the Truman period published in 1978-1970. He retired in 1968, became a research fellow at the Hoover Institution, and gave lectures across the U.S., Asia, and Europe. Emmerson passed away at age 76.