List of ambassadors of the United States to Australia

Ambassador of the United States to Australia
Seal of the United States Department of State
Flag of a United States Ambassador
Incumbent Erika Olson Chargé d'affaires ad interim since November 28, 2024[1]
Inaugural holder	Clarence E. Gauss (as U.S. Minister to Australia)
Formation	1940
Website	Ambassador to Australia

The position of United States Ambassador to Australia has existed since 1940. U.S.–Australian relations have been close throughout the history of Australia. Before World War II, Australia was closely aligned with the United Kingdom, but it has strengthened its relationship with the United States since 1942, as Britain's influence in Asia has declined and the United States' influence has increased. At the governmental level, United States–Australia relationships are formalized by the ANZUS treaty and Australia-United States Free Trade Agreement.

The embassy in Canberra has long been regarded as a desirable posting and hence has become a patronage position. U.S. Ambassadors to Australia have traditionally been friends, political allies, or former business associates of the current President. Some have been major donors to the President's election campaign or political party. Few have been career diplomats (Marshall Green was a conspicuous exception). The two ambassadors during the Bush Administration, for example, were Tom Schieffer, a former business associate of President Bush, and Robert McCallum Jr., a Bush college friend. In 1942, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's close associate and nominee to be U.S. Minister in Canberra, Edward J. Flynn, was forced to withdraw his nomination for the position following difficulties in the senate confirmation process.^[2] The actor Fess Parker was offered the post in 1985 by Ronald Reagan, after representing Reagan at an event in Australia. Parker considered it, but turned it down.^[3]

This arrangement has suited Australian governments, which welcome the ability of such Ambassadors to gain direct access to the President, bypassing the State Department. However, this has often had the result of long periods without an appointed ambassador and additional delays in the Senate confirmation process, with the career diplomat deputy head of mission serving as Chargé d’Affaires ad interim, such as between February 2005 and August 2006, from September 2016 to February 2019, from January 2021 to July 2022 and since November 2024.

The following individuals have served as the U.S. ambassadors to Australia, or any precedent titles:

List of U.S. ambassadors to Australia

Ordinal	Officeholder	Image	Term began	Term ended	Time in office	Notes
U.S. Ministers to Australia
1	Clarence E. Gauss		July 17, 1940	March 5, 1941
2	Nelson T. Johnson		September 12, 1941	April 20, 1945
U.S. Ambassadors to Australia
3	Robert Butler		1946	1948		[4]
4	Myron M. Cowen		1948	1949
5	Pete Jarman		June 8, 1949 (1949-06-08)	July 31, 1953 (1953-07-31)	4 years, 53 days	[5]
6	Amos J. Peaslee		August 12, 1953	February 16, 1956
7	Douglas M. Moffat		1956	1956
8	William J. Sebald		March 14, 1957 (1957-03-14)	October 31, 1961 (1961-10-31)	4 years, 231 days	[6]
9	William C. Battle		July 13, 1962 (1962-07-13)	August 31, 1964 (1964-08-31)	2 years, 49 days	[7]
10	Ed Clark		1965	1967		[8]
11	William H. Crook		1968	1969
12	Walter L. Rice		1969	1973
13	Marshall Green		June 8, 1973	July 31, 1975
14	James Ward Hargrove		1976	1977
15	Philip H. Alston		1977	1981		[9][10]
16	Robert D. Nesen		November 20, 1981 (1981-11-20)	May 2, 1985 (1985-05-02)	3 years, 163 days	[11]
17	Laurence W. Lane		December 6, 1985 (1985-12-06)	April 29, 1989 (1989-04-29)	3 years, 144 days	[12]
18	Melvin F. Sembler		October 10, 1989 (1989-10-10)	February 28, 1993 (1993-02-28)	3 years, 141 days	[13]
19	Edward J. Perkins		November 24, 1993 (1993-11-24)	July 19, 1996 (1996-07-19)	2 years, 238 days	[14]
20	Genta H. Holmes		April 11, 1997 (1997-04-11)	July 23, 2000 (2000-07-23)	3 years, 103 days	[15]
21	Edward (Skip) Gnehm		August 30, 2000 (2000-08-30)	June 22, 2001 (2001-06-22)	296 days	[16]
−	Michael P. Owens		June 22, 2001 (2001-06-22)	August 22, 2001 (2001-08-22)	61 days	Chargé d’affaires[17]
22	Thomas Schieffer		August 23, 2001 (2001-08-23)	February 18, 2005 (2005-02-18)	3 years, 179 days	[18]
−	William Stanton		February 19, 2005 (2005-02-19)	July 5, 2006 (2006-07-05)	1 year, 136 days	Chargé d’affaires[19]
−	Michael P. Owens		July 5, 2006 (2006-07-05)	August 23, 2006 (2006-08-23)	49 days	Chargé d’affaires[20]
23	Robert McCallum, Jr.		August 24, 2006 (2006-08-24)	January 20, 2009 (2009-01-20)	2 years, 149 days	[21]
−	Daniel A. Clune		January 20, 2009 (2009-01-20)	November 26, 2009 (2009-11-26)	310 days	Chargé d’affaires[22]
24	Jeff Bleich		November 26, 2009 (2009-11-26)	September 12, 2013 (2013-09-12)	3 years, 290 days	[23]
−	J. Thomas Dougherty		September 12, 2013 (2013-09-12)	September 24, 2013 (2013-09-24)	12 days	Chargé d’affaires[24]
25	John Berry		September 25, 2013 (2013-09-25)	September 20, 2016 (2016-09-20)	2 years, 361 days	[25]
−	James Carouso		September 21, 2016 (2016-09-21)	March 12, 2019 (2019-03-12)	2 years, 173 days	Chargé d’affaires[26]
26	Arthur B. Culvahouse Jr.		March 13, 2019 (2019-03-13)	January 19, 2021 (2021-01-19)	1 year, 312 days	[27]
−	Michael B. Goldman		January 20, 2021 (2021-01-20)	July 25, 2022 (2022-07-25)	1 year, 141 days	Chargé d’affaires[28]
27	Caroline Kennedy		July 25, 2022 (2022-07-25)	November 28, 2024 (2024-11-28)	2 years, 129 days
−	Erika Olson		November 28, 2024 (2024-11-28)		59 days	Chargé d’affaires

• Australia–United States relations
• Ambassadors of the United States
• Embassy of the United States, Canberra
• Embassy of Australia, Washington, D.C.
• Ambassadors of Australia to the United States
• Consuls-General of Australia in New York

• United States Department of State: Background notes on Australia
•  This article incorporates public domain material from U.S. Bilateral Relations Fact Sheets. United States Department of State.

• Official website
• United States Department of State: Chiefs of Mission for Australia
• United States Department of State: Australia