Don E. Fehrenbacher
Encyclopedia
Don Edward Fehrenbacher (August 21, 1920 – December 13, 1997) was an American
historian
.
, he was a well known historian of 19th century United States
history. He wrote on politics
, slavery
, and Abraham Lincoln
. In 1979, he won the Pulitzer Prize for History
for his book about the Dred Scott Decision. Two years earlier, he completed and edited David M. Potter
's Pulitzer prize winner The Impending Crisis, 1848-1861. In 1997, he won the Lincoln Prize
.
From 1953 to 1984, Fehrenbacher taught American History at Stanford University
.
Fehrenbacher died on December 13, 1997 in Stanford, California
. He was survived by his wife Virginia, three children, numerous grandchildren, a sister, Shirley, and two brothers, Robert and Marvin. His posthumous book, The Slaveholding Republic: An Account of the United States government's Relations to Slavery (completed and edited by Ward M. McAfee), won the Avery O. Craven Award
from the Organization of American Historians
in 2002.
1962 - Prelude To Greatness: Lincoln In The 1850s
1964 - A Basic History of California
1964 - Abraham Lincoln: A Documentary Portrait Through His Speeches and Writings
1968 - California
: An Illustrated History
1968 - Changing Image of Lincoln in American Historiographt
1969 - Era of Expansion 1800-1848
1970 - The Leadership of Abraham Lincoln
1970 - Manifest Destiny and the Coming of the Civil War, 1840-1861
1970 - Leadership of Abraham Lincoln (Problems in American History)
1976 - The Impending Crisis (completed and edited by)
1978 - Tradition, Conflict and Modernization (Studies in Social Discontinuity)
1978 - The Dred Scott Case: Its Significance in American Law and Politics
1979 - The Minor Affair: An Adventure in Forgery and Detection
1980 - The South and Three Sectional Crises
1981 - Slavery, Law, and Politics: The Dred Scott Case in Historical Perspective
1987 - Lincoln
in Text and Context: Collected Essays
1989 - Abraham Lincoln: Speeches and Writings 1832-1858
1989 - Lincoln: Speeches and Writings: Volume 2: 1859-1865
1989 - Constitutions and Constitutionalism in the Slaveholding South
1995 - Sectional Crisis and Southern Constitutionalism
1996 - Recollected Words of Abraham Lincoln (compiled and edited with Virginia)
2001 - The Slaveholding Republic: An Account of the United States government's Relations to Slavery (completed and edited by Ward M. McAfee)
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
historian
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
.
Biography
Born in Sterling, IllinoisSterling, Illinois
Sterling is a city in Whiteside County, Illinois, United States. The population was 15,370 at the 2010 census, down from 15,451 at the 2000 census. Formerly nicknamed "The Hardware Capital of the World", Sterling has long been associated with manufacturing and the steel...
, he was a well known historian of 19th century United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
history. He wrote on politics
Politics
Politics is a process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The term is generally applied to the art or science of running governmental or state affairs, including behavior within civil governments, but also applies to institutions, fields, and special interest groups such as the...
, slavery
Slavery
Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
, and Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
. In 1979, he won the Pulitzer Prize for History
Pulitzer Prize for History
The Pulitzer Prize for History has been awarded since 1917 for a distinguished book upon the history of the United States. Many history books have also been awarded the Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction and Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography...
for his book about the Dred Scott Decision. Two years earlier, he completed and edited David M. Potter
David M. Potter
David M. Potter was an American historian of the South. He was born in Augusta, Georgia, and graduated from Emory University in 1932. At Yale he worked with Ulrich Bonnell Phillips. His earned his Ph.D. in 1940 and published Lincoln and His Party in the Secession Crisis in 1942...
's Pulitzer prize winner The Impending Crisis, 1848-1861. In 1997, he won the Lincoln Prize
Lincoln Prize
The Lincoln Prize, endowed by Richard Gilder and Lewis Lehrman and administered by the Civil War Institute at Gettysburg College, has been awarded annually since 1991 for the best non-fiction historical work of the year on the American Civil War. It is named for U.S...
.
From 1953 to 1984, Fehrenbacher taught American History at Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
.
Fehrenbacher died on December 13, 1997 in Stanford, California
Stanford, California
Stanford is a census-designated place in Santa Clara County, California, United States and is the home of Stanford University. The population was 13,809 at the 2010 census....
. He was survived by his wife Virginia, three children, numerous grandchildren, a sister, Shirley, and two brothers, Robert and Marvin. His posthumous book, The Slaveholding Republic: An Account of the United States government's Relations to Slavery (completed and edited by Ward M. McAfee), won the Avery O. Craven Award
Avery O. Craven Award
The Avery O. Craven Award, first given in 1985, is awarded annually by the Organization of American Historians for the most original history book on the coming of the American Civil War, the Civil War years , or the Era of Reconstruction , with the exception of works of purely military history....
from the Organization of American Historians
Organization of American Historians
The Organization of American Historians , formerly known as the Mississippi Valley Historical Association, is the largest professional society dedicated to the teaching and study of American history. OAH's members in the U.S...
in 2002.
Publications
1957 - Chicago Giant: A Biography of "Long John" Wentworth1962 - Prelude To Greatness: Lincoln In The 1850s
1964 - A Basic History of California
1964 - Abraham Lincoln: A Documentary Portrait Through His Speeches and Writings
1968 - California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
: An Illustrated History
1968 - Changing Image of Lincoln in American Historiographt
1969 - Era of Expansion 1800-1848
1970 - The Leadership of Abraham Lincoln
1970 - Manifest Destiny and the Coming of the Civil War, 1840-1861
1970 - Leadership of Abraham Lincoln (Problems in American History)
1976 - The Impending Crisis (completed and edited by)
1978 - Tradition, Conflict and Modernization (Studies in Social Discontinuity)
1978 - The Dred Scott Case: Its Significance in American Law and Politics
1979 - The Minor Affair: An Adventure in Forgery and Detection
1980 - The South and Three Sectional Crises
1981 - Slavery, Law, and Politics: The Dred Scott Case in Historical Perspective
1987 - Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
in Text and Context: Collected Essays
1989 - Abraham Lincoln: Speeches and Writings 1832-1858
1989 - Lincoln: Speeches and Writings: Volume 2: 1859-1865
1989 - Constitutions and Constitutionalism in the Slaveholding South
1995 - Sectional Crisis and Southern Constitutionalism
1996 - Recollected Words of Abraham Lincoln (compiled and edited with Virginia)
2001 - The Slaveholding Republic: An Account of the United States government's Relations to Slavery (completed and edited by Ward M. McAfee)
External links
- Don Edward Fehrenbacher Papers, 1928-1997(11.25 linear ft.) are housed in the Department of Special Collections and University Archives at Stanford University Libraries