Thomas Childs Cochran (April 29, 1902 – May 2, 1999) was an American

economic historian Economic history is the study of history using methodological tools from economics or with a special attention to economic phenomena. Research is conducted using a combination of historical methods, statistical methods and the application of ...

. He was the author of several books. He is considered a pioneer in that field.

Early life

Thomas C. Cochran was born on April 29, 1902, in

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

. He received his bachelor's and master's degrees from

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...

before obtaining his doctorate from 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 ...

Career

Cochran 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 1953. Cochran taught at N.Y.U. for almost twenty-five years before joining the University of Pennsylvania in 1950, where he became Benjamin Franklin Professor of History, a position from which he retired in 1972. He was elected to the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Academy) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and other ...

in 1971 and also 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, claiming over 10,000 members. Founded in 1884, AHA works to protect academic free ...

the following year. In the mid-20th century, Cochran was one of the most significant economic historians of the United States, producing ''The Age of Enterprise'' (1961), an important work on the history of American capitalism. Throughout his career, he attempted to examine the history of business not merely as a narrowly economic topic, but also as a cultural one. He opened up new methodological approaches and areas of research in the field of economic history.

Personal life and death

Cochran was married three times. He died on May 2, 1999, at the Quadrangle Retirement Center in

Haverford, Pennsylvania Haverford is an Unincorporated area#United States, unincorporated community located in both Haverford Township, Pennsylvania, Haverford Township in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States, and Lower Merion Township, Pennsylvania, Lower Merio ...

Works

*''The Pabst Brewing Company: The History of an American Business'' (1948) *''Railroad Leaders: The Business Mind in Action'' (1953) *''The American Business System: A Historical Perspective, 1900–1955'' (1957) *''A Basic History of American Business'' (1959) *''The Age of Enterprise'' (1961) *''Railroad Leaders 1845–1890: The Business Mind in Action'' (1965) *''Business in American Life'' (1972) *''Frontiers of Change: Early Industrialism in America'' (1981) *''Challenges to American Values: Society, Business and Religion'' (1985)

References

External links

*
History and Cultural Crisis
', 1972 presidential address at the

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cochran 1902 births 1999 deaths American economic historians Business historians New York University alumni New York University faculty Writers from Manhattan Presidents of the American Historical Association University of Pennsylvania alumni University of Pennsylvania faculty 20th-century American historians 20th-century American male writers Historians from New York (state) American male non-fiction writers Members of the American Philosophical Society Educators from Manhattan Historians from New York City