Uncommon DS as president, one page, 10.25 x 14, December 23, 1913. President Wilson appoints James Hamilton Lewis of Illinois as “a Commissioner to represent the United States at the International Maritime Conference to be held at London, November 13, 1913, in accordance with the provisions of the ‘Joint Resolution Proposing an international maritime conference,’ approved June 28, 1913.” Signed neatly at the conclusion by Woodrow Wilson, and countersigned by John B. Moore as acting secretary of state. The document retains its original large wafer seal. In very good to fine condition, with light creasing and wrinkling, and a small hole to the top center.
The first International Conference for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) assembled in London from November 23, 1913 to January 20, 1914, in reaction to the tragic sinking of the RMS Titanic. The conference was comprised of more than 100 representatives from a variety of maritime countries, including Germany, Austria-Hungary, Belgium, Denmark, Spain, the United States, France, Great Britain, Italy, Norway, Netherlands, Russia, Sweden, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand. To address the complicated safety issues, the conference work was divided among six committees: 1. radiotelegraphy, 2. navigation safety, 3. certificates, 4. construction, 5. revision. 6. lifesaving appliances. Each committee was made up of one or more delegates from each of the participating countries. After an unrelenting seven weeks, 13 countries signed the 1914 SOLAS Convention on January 20, 1914. It was ratified by only five nations, though: Great Britain, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, and Sweden. Many countries, including the United States, suspended ratification efforts due to the commencement of World War I. As a result, the 1914 SOLAS Convention never did come into force as intended on July 1, 1915.
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