Background
Lawson was born on September 26, 1895 in Newport, Tennessee.
Lawson was born on September 26, 1895 in Newport, Tennessee.
He graduated from Georgetown University with a Bachelor of Science in foreign service (1924) and later Mississippi (1925).
He was a World War I veteran. He fought in World War I and later joined the United States State Department. After many posts such as Economic Counselor, Ankara, Turkey (1944-1947), Commercial Attache, Managua, Nicaragua (1940-1944), Commercial Attache, Prague, Czechoslovakia (1935-1939), Trade Commissioner, Johannesburg, South Africa (1927-1935), and Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce (1926-1927), he served as ambassador to Iceland (1949-1954) and the newly formed state of Israel.
He was Deputy Assistant Secretary for Personnel in 1959-1960.