Benjamin Franklin
This section of the website covers a broad range of material relating to the early and more recent history of the State Department. The first section shows the content of an exhibit entitled A Brief History of U.S. Diplomacy, prepared by the Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training (ADST) for the Department of State. The second, the Historical Overview, uses State Department and other sources to provide information on major early figures and developments, as well as to bring the story up to the present with material on each Secretary of State since World War II. The third section focuses on the professional service, with special attention given to certain postwar “Examples of Excellence,” State Department personnel who have been “in harm’s way,” Foreign Service Officers known as China Hands and Arabists, and the long struggle of women and minorities for equitable entry and advancement opportunities within the Department of State.