Hildor Arnold Barton (November 30, 1929 – September 28, 2016) was an American historian and a national authority on

Scandinavian history The history of Scandinavia is the history of the geographical region of Scandinavia and its peoples. The region is located in Northern Europe, and consists of Denmark, Norway and Sweden. Finland and Iceland are at times, especially in English- ...

, especially the history of Sweden, and of Swedes and other Scandinavians in North America.

Early life

Barton was born of

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

descent in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

in 1929, the son of Sven Hildor Barton (1892–1972) and Marguerite Anna née Lemke (1901–1983). His paternal grandfather was born in Djursdala parish,

Kalmar Kalmar (, , ) is a city in the southeast of Sweden, situated by the Baltic Sea. It had 36,392 inhabitants in 2010 and is the seat of Kalmar Municipality. It is also the capital of Kalmar County, which comprises 12 municipalities with a total of ...

, Småland county, Sweden and emigrated to America in 1867. His paternal grandmother was born in Bollnäs parish,

Hälsingland Hälsingland (), sometimes referred to as Helsingia in English, is a historical province or ''landskap'' in central Sweden. It borders Gästrikland, Dalarna, Härjedalen, Medelpad and the Gulf of Bothnia. It is part of the land of Norrland. ...

county and emigrated to America in 1889. His mother was a niece of

Harry Edward Arnhold Harry Edward Arnhold (born 16 January 1879 in Hong Kong) was for five years the chairman of the Shanghai Municipal Council, the body that administered the Shanghai International Settlement in Shanghai, China; the chairman of Arnhold & Co., which i ...

Career

Barton received his B.A. degree at

Pomona College Pomona College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Claremont, California. It was established in 1887 by a group of Congregationalists who wanted to recreate a "college of the New England type" in Southern California. In 1925, it became t ...

and his doctorate at

Princeton University Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ...

. Arnold Barton taught history at the

University of Alberta The University of Alberta, also known as U of A or UAlberta, is a Public university, public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It was founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford,"A Gentleman of Strathcona – Alexande ...

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...

, Alberta, Canada (1960 to 1963) and at the

University of California, Santa Barbara The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a public land-grant research university in Santa Barbara, California with 23,196 undergraduates and 2,983 graduate students enrolled in 2021–2022. It is part of the U ...

(1963 to 1970). He taught at

Southern Illinois University, Carbondale Southern Illinois University (SIU or SIUC) is a State university system, public research university in Carbondale, Illinois. Founded in 1869, SIU is the oldest and flagship campus of the Southern Illinois University system. The university enroll ...

, Illinois, where he became professor in 1975 and from where he retired in 1996 as professor emeritus of history. After retiring he moved to Sweden. His research and writing covers a broad register, including Scandinavia in the era of the French Revolutionary-Napoleonic era, relations between homeland Swedes and Swedish Americans, and the Norwegian-Swedish union of 1814-1905. Barton has served on the boards of the Swedish-American Historical Society and the Swenson Swedish Immigration Research Center. Between 1974 and 1990, Barton served as editor of the ''Swedish-American Historical Quarterly''.

Honors and recognition

In 1985, Professor H. Arnold Barton was awarded the Charlotta Medal in recognition of his contributions to the Swedish Emigrant Institute at

Växjö Växjö ( ) is a city and the seat of Växjö Municipality, Kronoberg County, Sweden. It had 70,489 inhabitants (2019) out of a municipal population of 95,995 (2021). It is the administrative, cultural, and industrial centre of Kronoberg County ...

, Småland, Sweden. Barton was named "Swedish-American of the Year" in 1988 by the Royal Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and by the two Swedish District lodges of the

Vasa Order of America Vasa Order of America ( sv, Vasa Orden av Amerika) is a Swedish-American fraternal, cultural and educational organization. The organization seeks to benefit its members by sharing Swedish and Scandinavian culture and heritage. Philosophy The obje ...

. In 1989, he was granted an honorary doctorate from

Uppsala University Uppsala University ( sv, Uppsala universitet) is a public research university in Uppsala, Sweden. Founded in 1477, it is the oldest university in Sweden and the Nordic countries still in operation. The university rose to significance during ...

, Sweden. In 2000, he was made Knight-Commander of the Royal Swedish

Order of the Polar Star The Royal Order of the Polar Star ( Swedish: ''Kungliga Nordstjärneorden'') is a Swedish order of chivalry created by King Frederick I on 23 February 1748, together with the Order of the Sword and the Order of the Seraphim. The Order of t ...

by King

Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden Carl XVI Gustaf (Carl Gustaf Folke Hubertus; born 30 April 1946) is King of Sweden. He ascended the throne on the death of his grandfather, Gustaf VI Adolf, on 15 September 1973. He is the youngest child and only son of Prince Gustaf Adolf, D ...

. In 2012 he received the Swedish Council of America's Great Achievement Award.

Death

He died on September 28, 2016 in Stockholm, Sweden.

Selected bibliography

* ''Count Hans Axel von Fersen: Aristocrat in an Age of Revolution'' (1975) * ''Letters from the Promised Land: Swedes in America, 1840-1914'' (1975) * ''The Search for Ancestors: A Swedish-American Family Saga'' (1979) * ''Scandinavia in the Revolutionary Era, 1760-1815'' (1986) * ''A Folk Divided: Homeland Swedes and Swedish Americans, 1840-1940'' (1994) * ''Northern Arcadia: Foreign Travelers in Scandinavia, 1765-1815'' (1998) * ''Sweden and Visions of Norway: Politics and Culture, 1814-1905'' (2003) * ''The Old Country and the New: Essays on Swedes and America'' (2006) * ''Essays on Scandinavian History'' (2009)

References

External links

Vasa Order of America
{{DEFAULTSORT:Barton, Arnold Historians of Europe Scandinavian studies scholars 1929 births 2016 deaths University of California, Santa Barbara faculty Southern Illinois University faculty Society for the Advancement of Scandinavian Study Pomona College alumni Princeton University alumni American people of Swedish descent American expatriates in Sweden Commanders of the Order of the Polar Star Writers from Los Angeles 20th-century American educators 20th-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century American non-fiction writers Historians from California