William Linn Westermann (September 15, 1873 – October 4, 1954) was an American historian and

papyrologist Papyrology is the study of manuscripts of ancient literature, correspondence, legal archives, etc., preserved on portable media from antiquity, the most common form of which is papyrus, the principal writing material in the ancient civilizations ...

who served as the president of the

American Historical Association The American Historical Association (AHA) is the oldest professional association of historians in the United States and the largest such organization in the world. Founded in 1884, the AHA works to protect academic freedom, develop professional s ...

in 1944. He was regarded as an expert on the economy of the ancient world.

Career

Westermann was born in Belleville, Illinois, and attended the

University of Nebraska A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, ...

and

University of Berlin Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin (german: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a German public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin. It was established by Frederick William III on the initiative ...

. He taught at the

University of Missouri The University of Missouri (Mizzou, MU, or Missouri) is a public land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus University of Missouri System. MU was founded in ...

from 1902 to 1906, then left for the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public land-grant research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. ...

. In 1908, Westermann joined the faculty of the

University of Wisconsin A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, ...

. He spent twelve years of his academic career in Wisconsin, moving to

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to tea ...

in 1920. He was appointed professor of ancient history at

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

on March 5, 1923. During his tenure at Columbia, Westermann acquired a large collection of Egyptian papyri for the institution. He retired in 1948 to become a visiting professor at the

University of Alexandria Alexandria University ( ar, جامعة الإسكندرية) is a public university in Alexandria, Egypt. It was established in 1938 as a satellite of Fouad University (the name of which was later changed to Cairo University), becoming an indepen ...

in Egypt. Westermann was appointed to the American Commission to Negotiate Peace and advised President

Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...

on Greek and Turkish events at the

Paris Peace Conference of 1919 Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

. He was a member of the

American Academy in Rome The American Academy in Rome is a research and arts institution located on the Gianicolo (Janiculum Hill) in Rome. The academy is a member of the Council of American Overseas Research Centers. History In 1893, a group of American architects, ...

's Broad of Trustees from 1922 to 1933. He was elected to the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...

in 1944.

Personal life

Westermann, a descendant of

William William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

and Sharon Tyndale, died at White Plains Hospital in White Plains, New York on October 4, 1954. His wife, Avrina Davies Westermann, whom he married on June 15, 1912, died on December 21, 1960. They had one son, Evan Davies Westermann, (1914–1991) who attended the Scarsdale public schools, Phillips Exeter Academy, graduated from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...

, and worked for the New York Department of Commerce. He married Virginia Woodworth on August 4, 1942, and had two children.

References

External links

*
William Linn Westermann papers, ca. 1930–1954
at the Columbia University Library.
William Linn Westermann, Correspondence, 1918–1919
at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Library
William Linn Westermann's presidential address and picture
at the American Historical Association {{DEFAULTSORT:Westermanm, William Linn 1873 births 1954 deaths People from Belleville, Illinois 20th-century American historians American male non-fiction writers Presidents of the American Historical Association University of Nebraska–Lincoln alumni University of Missouri faculty University of Wisconsin–Madison faculty Cornell University faculty Columbia University faculty University of Minnesota faculty American papyrologists American people of English descent 20th-century American male writers Expatriates from the United States in the German Empire Members of the American Philosophical Society