William Stuart Symington III (/ˈsaɪmɪŋtən/ SY-ming-tən; June 26, 1901 – December 14, 1988) was an American businessman and Democratic politician from Missouri.

[2] He graduated from Baltimore City College in 1918, and at the age of 17, Symington enlisted in the United States Army as a private first class during World War I.

Symington, who was an active proponent of racial justice ("All Americans should have their chance") integrated the Emerson Electric work force, which resulted in increased productivity.

Symington had a stormy term as he worked to win respect for the United States Air Force, which previously had been part of the Army.

During his tenure, Symington had a meeting with John K. Northrop on the contract for the YB-49 Flying Wing bomber, which was well underway with seven examples manufactured.

This threat, later reported by Northrop, was eventually carried though when Symington cancelled the Flying Wing programme and ordered all existing aircraft destroyed.

[9] Major accomplishments during Symington's term as Secretary included the Berlin Airlift and championing the United States Air Force Academy.

In 1952, he was elected Senator from Missouri, taking the seat previously held by Truman and scoring a win for the Democrats in a year otherwise favorable to the Republicans.

As a member of the Senate Armed Services and Foreign Relations committees, Symington specialized in military affairs and became known as an advocate for a strong national defense.

As it appeared that Moss had been mistakenly identified, Symington proclaimed before the packed audience that he believed she was not a Communist and had never been, receiving thunderous applause from those present.

Later that year, Symington took a lead role in censuring McCarthy during the Army–McCarthy hearings, capitalizing upon his prominence and expertise as a former Secretary of the Air Force.

In 1959, Symington, then Chairman of the National Security Resources Board in Washington, D.C., was preparing to run in the 1960 presidential election and won the backing of former President and fellow Missourian Harry Truman, but eventually lost the nomination to Senator John F. Kennedy.

[12] Symington, unlike Kennedy or Lyndon B. Johnson, refused to speak to segregated audiences in the southern United States and this hurt his chances.

As an example, Symington once formally requested a report from military sources regarding the possible existence of subterranean superhumans, which one of his constituents had become concerned about after reading a fiction book and mistaking it for non-fiction.

[citation needed] In 2002, this and Symington's other senatorial correspondence and papers were donated to the Western Historical Manuscripts Collection of the University of Missouri and are now available to the general public.

His grandson, also named Stuart Symington, is employed by the U.S. State Department, and has served as U.S. ambassador to Djibouti (2006–2008), Rwanda (2008–2011) and Nigeria (2016–2019).