Will Mercer Cook

Will Mercer Cook
3rd United States Ambassador to Senegal
In office July 9, 1964 – July 1, 1966
President	Lyndon B. Johnson
Preceded by	Philip Mayer Kaiser
Succeeded by	William R. Rivkin
1st United States Ambassador to The Gambia
In office May 18, 1965 – July 1, 1966
President	Lyndon B. Johnson
Preceded by	office established
Succeeded by	William R. Rivkin
2nd United States Ambassador to Niger
In office June 22, 1961 – May 30, 1964
President	John F. Kennedy Lyndon B. Johnson
Preceded by	R. Borden Reams
Succeeded by	Robert J. Ryan
Personal details
Born	March 30, 1903 Washington, D.C.
Died	October 4, 1987 Washington, D.C.
Nationality	United States
Spouse(s)	Vashti Smith (August 31, 1929 - 1969, her death)
Children	Mercer Jacques
Alma mater	Amherst College, BA, 1925; University of Paris, teacher's diploma, 1926; Brown University, MA, 1931, PhD, 1936
Profession	Diplomat

Will Mercer Cook (March 30, 1903 – October 4, 1987), popularly known as Mercer Cook, was an African-American diplomat and professor. He was the first American ambassador to the Gambia, appointed while ambassador to Senegal. He was also the second American ambassador to Niger.

Will Mercer Cook was born on March 30, 1903, in Washington D.C., to Will Marion Cook, a famous composer, and Abbie Mitchell Cook, a soprano singer best known for playing the role of "Clara" in the premier production of George Gershwin's Porgy and Bess in 1935. Cook's sister, and only sibling, was born Marion Abigail Cook in 1900. As a child, Cook traveled extensively in the United States and Europe with his parents as they pursued their respective careers in the entertainment industry. Cook also lived across the street from the legendary jazz musician Duke Ellington.

Cook attended Dunbar High School in Washington D.C., a predominantly black school. He graduated from Amherst College with his bachelor's in 1925 and received his teacher's diploma from the University of Paris in 1926. Cook attended Brown University and earned a master's degree in 1931 and a doctorate in 1936.

While completing his graduate education, Cook worked as an assistant professor of romance languages at Howard University from 1927 until 1936. Upon completing his doctorate, Cook became a professor of French at Atlanta University from 1936 until 1943. During that time, he received a Rosenwald Fellowship to study in Paris and the French West Indies. In 1942, he received another General Education Board Fellowship to the University of Havana. From 1943 to 1945, Cook worked as a professor of English at the University of Haiti. During this time, he wrote the Handbook for Haitian Teachers of English. He also wrote the literary criticism titled Five French Negro Authors and edited an anthology of Haitian readings.

In 1929, Cook married Vashti Smith, a social worker. The couple had two sons named Mercer and Jacques. He returned to Paris in 1934, on a fellowship from the General Education Board.

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