Christopher McKee (born in

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

on 14 June 1935) is an American naval historian, librarian, and educator.

Early life and education

Mckee graduated from the University of St. Thomas in Houston in 1957 and completed his

Master of Library Science The Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS) is the master's degree that combines two interdisciplinary academic disciplines. Library science is applied information science and a subfield of information science. This degree focuses on inf ...

degree at the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

in 1960.

Professional career

McKee has worked at various institutions of higher learning as a librarian, historian, and educator. These institutions include

Washington and Lee University Washington and Lee University (Washington and Lee or W&L) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Lexington, Virginia, United States. Established in 1749 as Augusta Academy, it is among ...

(1958–1962),

Southern Illinois University Southern Illinois University is a system of public universities in the southern region of the U.S. state of Illinois. Its headquarters is in Carbondale, Illinois. Board of trustees The university is governed by the nine member SIU Board of T ...

, Edwardsville (1962–1972), and

Grinnell College Grinnell College ( ) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Grinnell, Iowa, United States. It was founded in 1846 when a group of Congregationalism in the United States, Congregationalis ...

(1972–2006). McKee also held the Secretary of the Navy

Research Chair in Naval History The United States Secretary of the Navy's Research Chair in Naval History was established in 1987 by the then Naval Historical Center, Department of the Navy (now known as the Naval History & Heritage Command). This competitive appointment was des ...

at the

Naval Historical Center The Naval History and Heritage Command, formerly the Naval Historical Center, is an Echelon II command responsible for the preservation, analysis, and dissemination of U.S. naval history and heritage located at the historic Washington Navy Yard ...

(1990–1991) and was a NEH fellow at the

Newberry Library The Newberry Library is an independent research library, specializing in the humanities. It is located in Chicago, Illinois, and has been free and open to the public since 1887. The Newberry's mission is to foster a deeper understanding of our wo ...

(1978–79).

Awards

McKee has been recognized nationally for his contributions to the study of naval history. Awards include the U.S. Naval History prize (1985) of the John Lyman Book awards of the

North American Society for Oceanic History The North American Society for Oceanic History (NASOH) is the national organization in the United States of America for professional historians, underwater archeologists, archivists, librarians, museum specialists and others working in the broad f ...

, and the Samuel Eliot Morison Award of the

USS Constitution Museum The USS Constitution Museum is located in the Charlestown Navy Yard, which is part of the Boston National Historical Park in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. The museum is situated near the ship at the end of Boston's Freedom Trail. The ...

(1993). He was awarded the 2016 Commodore Dudley W. Knox Naval History Lifetime Achievement Award presented by the

Naval Historical Foundation The Naval Historical Foundation was a nonprofit organization founded in 1926 and disbanded in 2022. It had a broad mission to preserve and promote the naval history of the United States by supporting official maritime history programs and institut ...

Published works

* ''Edward Preble: A Naval Biography, 1761-1807'' (1972) * ''A Gentlemanly and Honorable Profession: The Creation of the U. S. Naval Officer Corps, 1794-1815'' (1991) * ''Sober Men and True: Sailor Lives in the Royal Navy, 1900-1945'' (2002) * ''Ungentle Goodnights: Life in a Home for Elderly and Disabled Naval Sailors and Marines and the Perilous Seafaring Careers That Brought Them There'' (2018).

References

External links

Guide to the Papers of Christopher McKee, Grinnell College
{{DEFAULTSORT:McKee, Christopher American naval historians American male non-fiction writers 1935 births Living people University of Michigan School of Information alumni Southern Illinois University faculty Grinnell College faculty Historians from Brooklyn