William C. Doherty

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William Charles Doherty (February 23, 1902 – August 9, 1987) was an American labor leader and ambassador. Born in Glendale, Ohio, he started as a telegraph messenger at 14, then became a telegraph operator and joined the Commercial Telegraphers Union. In 1919 he lied about his age to join the U.S. Army and served in Siberia. He rose to sergeant and, in 1921, was the chief radio operator on Corregidor in the Philippines. After leaving the army, he worked as a Cincinnati letter carrier and joined the National Association of Letter Carriers.

In 1928 he was elected president of his local union, in 1932 he led the Ohio Letter Carriers’ Association, and in 1941 he became president of the national union. He also became a vice-president of the American Federation of Labor and helped found the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions. He served as the AFL’s representative to the British Trades Union Congress. In 1958 he helped win a pay raise for letter carriers through rallies on Capitol Hill and a day of prayer. In 1962, President John F. Kennedy named him ambassador to Jamaica, a post he left in 1964.