William Jennings Bryan was Secretary of State under President Truman.
Harry S. Truman ( May 8 , 1884December 26 , 1972 ) was an American politician who served as the 33rd President of the United States ( 1945 -- 53 ) , assuming that office upon the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt during the waning months of World War II . William Jennings Bryan ( March 19 , 1860 -- July 26 , 1925 ) was an American orator and politician from Nebraska , and a dominant force in the populist wing of the Democratic Party , standing three times as the Party 's nominee for President of the United States ( 1896 , 1900 , and 1908 ) .