Roy Franklin Nichols (March 3, 1896 – January 12, 1973) was an American historian who won the 1949 Pulitzer Prize for History for '' The Disruption of American Democracy''.

Biography

Nichols was born in

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, most populous City (New Jersey), city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, the county seat of Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, and a principal city of the New York metropolitan area. ...

, to Franklin Coriell and Annie Cairns Nichols. His wife was the historian Jeannette Paddock Nichols (1890–1982). He graduated from

Rutgers University Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of three campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's C ...

in 1918. He completed a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

degree from Rutgers in 1919. He was a fellow at

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

from 1920 to 1921,Fischer & Fischer (2002), p. 177 and an instructor in history at Columbia from 1921 to 1925.Brennan & Clarage (1999), p. 295 He completed a

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

degree from Columbia in 1923. In 1925 he was appointed assistant professor of history at the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

. From 1930 to 1966, he was professor of history at Pennsylvania. He also was Dean of Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (1952–66), and Vice Provost at Pennsylvania (1953–66). He was a visiting professor at Columbia (1944–45),

Pitt Professor of American History and Institutions The Pitt Professorship of American History and Institutions was established at the University of Cambridge on 5 February 1944 from a sum of £44,000 received from the Syndics of the Cambridge University Press in 1943 and augmented by a further £5,0 ...

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

(1948–49), and

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

(1952). In 1962 he was

Fulbright The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States cultural exchange programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people ...

lecturer in India and Japan. He was president of Middle States Association of History Teachers (1932–33); President of the Pennsylvania Historical Association (1936–1939); President of Pennsylvania Federation of Historical Societies (1940–42); Member of Pennsylvania Historical Commission (1940–43); Member of Council,

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, claiming over 10,000 members. Founded in 1884, AHA works to protect academic free ...

(1943–47); Chairman of Social Science Research Council (1949–53); President of Association of Graduate Schools of the American Association of Universities (1963–64); Vice President of American Historical Association (1964–65); President of American Historical Association (1965–66); and, Chairman of Council of Graduate Schools in the United States. He was a

Baptist Baptists are a Christian denomination, denomination within Protestant Christianity distinguished by baptizing only professing Christian believers (believer's baptism) and doing so by complete Immersion baptism, immersion. Baptist churches ge ...

Awards and Honorary Degrees

Nichols was elected to the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS) is an American scholarly organization and learned society founded in 1743 in Philadelphia that promotes knowledge in the humanities and natural sciences through research, professional meetings, publicat ...

in 1945. He received Haney Medal for Literary Excellence in 1961, and Athenaeum Literary Award in 1961. He has also received a number of

honorary degree An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or '' ad hon ...

s from universities such as Rutgers University and Cambridge University.

Publications

* ''The Democratic Machine, 1850–1854'' (1923) * ''Franklin Pierce: Young Hickory of the Granite Hills'' (1931; 2nd ed. 1958) * '' The Disruption of American Democracy'' (1948). (1949 Pulitzer Prize for History) * ''Advance Agents of American Destiny'' (1956) * ''Religion and American Democracy'' (1959) * ''Blueprints for Leviathan: American Style'' (1963) * ''History in a Self-Governing Culture'' (1966) * ''The Invention of the American Political Parties'' (1967) * ''The Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission: A History '' (1967) about the

Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission The Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC) is the governmental agency of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, responsible for the collection, conservation, and interpretation of Pennsylvania's heritage. The commission cares for hist ...

Notes

References

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External links

Roy Franklin Nichols biographyPapers of Roy Nichols at the University of Pennsylvania Libraries
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nichols, Roy Franklin 1896 births 1973 deaths Academics of the University of Cambridge 20th-century American historians Columbia University fellows Columbia University alumni Columbia University faculty Historians of the United States Presidents of the American Historical Association Pulitzer Prize for History winners Rutgers University alumni University of Pennsylvania faculty Writers from Newark, New Jersey 20th-century American male writers American expatriate academics in the United Kingdom Baptists from New Jersey Historians from New Jersey 20th-century Baptists Members of the American Philosophical Society