Knox, Frank (1874-1944), was a prominent American politician and publisher. He ran for vice president of the United States with Alfred M. Landon on the Republican ticket in 1936 but was defeated. Although a staunch Republican, he supported President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s foreign policy. In 1940, Roosevelt appointed him secretary of the Navy. Knox remained in this post until his death on April 28, 1944. After the United States entered World War II in 1941, Knox selected the officers who planned the major U.S. naval campaigns. He also oversaw the enormous expansion of the U.S. fleet.
Knox became publisher of the Sault Sainte Marie (Michigan) News in 1901. He took charge of the Boston American and Advertiser in 1927. The following year, he became general manager of all Hearst papers. He bought a controlling interest in the Chicago Daily News in 1931, and served as its publisher until 1940.
Knox was born William Franklin Knox on Jan. 1, 1874, in Boston. He served with Theodore Roosevelt’s Rough Riders in the Spanish-American War (1898) and as an Army officer in World War I (1914-1918).
