Howard Washington Odum (May 24, 1884 – November 8, 1954) was an American sociologist and author who researched African-American life and folklore. Beginning in 1920, he served as a faculty member at the University of North Carolina, founding the university press, the journal '' Social Forces'', and what is now the Howard W. Odum Institute for Research in Social Science, all in the 1920s. He also founded the university's School of Public Welfare, one of the first in the Southeast. With doctorates in psychology and sociology, he wrote extensively across academic disciplines, influencing several fields and publishing three novels in addition to 20 scholarly texts. He was white.

Early life

Born in 1884 in Bethlehem, Georgia, Howard W. Odum's parents, William Pleasants and Mary Ann (Thomas) Odum, encouraged his pursuit of education. He attended local schools through high school. Odum graduated from Emory University in 1904. Working as a teacher, he collected material on black folk lore and songs for two dissertations while completing his master's at University of Mississippi. He received his first doctorate, in psychology, at Clark University in Worcester, Massachusetts, where he studied with G. Stanley Hall. He received his second doctorate, in sociology, at Columbia University. While at Columbia, he studied with

Franklin Henry Giddings Franklin Henry Giddings (March 23, 1855 – June 11, 1931) was an American sociologist and economist. Biography Giddings was born at Sherman, Connecticut. He graduated from Union College (1877). For ten years he wrote items for the Springfi ...

, focusing on race. Both of his two dissertations on black studies were published: the first was on religious traits in folk songs, and the second was on black social life.

Career

He was appointed as Assistant Director of Research for President Herbert Hoover's Research Committee on Social Trends in 1933. He wrote three novels in addition to more than 20 scholarly texts, was President of the

American Sociological Association The American Sociological Association (ASA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing the discipline and profession of sociology. Founded in December 1905 as the American Sociological Society at Johns Hopkins University by a group of fif ...

in 1930, and was also a founding member of the Southern Regional Council. Odum was known for collecting extensive facts, ranging from oral history (including documentation of folk songs) to agricultural data. His publication ''Southern Regions of the United States'' (1936) pulled together a wide variety of facts and figures about the Southeast. This book, used by government administrators, farmers, scholars, and others, remains relevant today as a historical text. Odum's prolific contribution to the social sciences has been an influence on multiple disciplines, including ecology. Both of his sons,

Eugene Eugene may refer to: People and fictional characters * Eugene (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Eugene (actress) (born 1981), Kim Yoo-jin, South Korean actress and former member of the sin ...

and

Howard T. Odum Howard Thomas Odum (September 1, 1924 – September 11, 2002), usually cited as H. T. Odum, was an American ecologist. He is known for his pioneering work on ecosystem ecology, and for his provocative proposals for additional laws of thermod ...

, became internationally recognized scholars of zoologist and ecology. The Odum brothers frequently cited their father's holistic inquiry as an important influence in their own understanding of

emergent properties In philosophy, systems theory, science, and art, emergence occurs when an entity is observed to have properties its parts do not have on their own, properties or behaviors that emerge only when the parts interact in a wider whole. Emergence ...

and other ecological concepts.

In academia

Odum became a faculty member in the School of Public Welfare (a precursor of the School of

Social Work Social work is an academic discipline and practice-based profession concerned with meeting the basic needs of individuals, families, groups, communities, and society as a whole to enhance their individual and collective well-being. Social work ...

) and Department of Sociology at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1920, founding the School of Public Welfare, one of the earliest such schools in the Southeast. He was a visionary in establishing the University of North Carolina Press. While at Chapel Hill, Odum also founded the journal '' Social Forces'' in 1922 and the H.W. Odum Institute for Research in Social Science in 1924. Howard W

Odum was one of the most prolific academics who influenced the early development of the University of North Carolina; his vision and academic strengths attracted other scholars to campus. Odum hired and collaborated with the university's first female faculty member. His productivity was renowned, and his scholarship reached from academic settings to the community—including influences on race relations in the American South. His book ''Race and Rumors of Race'' (1943), exploring racial tensions in the South and rising activism among blacks, was an early documentation of the civil rights movement. Odum's views on race progressed over time, and ultimately, he was a leader, documenting folk life, hate crimes/lynchings, and the rich oral histories of African-American communities in the South. His work is difficult to classify under any discipline. Although he identified most with sociology, he was deeply committed to social welfare.Harvey A. Kantor, "Howard W. Odum: The implications of folk, planning, and regionalism." ''American Journal of Sociology'' 79.2 (1973): 278-295.

Marriage and family

Odum married Anna Louise Kranz (1888–1965), also a student of Stanley Hall at Clark University. The couple had two sons,

and

, and a daughter, Mary Frances Odum. The men both became zoologists and recognized scholars of ecology at University of Georgia and University of Florida, respectively. Mary Frances married Phillip Schinan and lives in Chapel Hill.

References

External links

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in the Southern Historical Collection, UNC-Chapel Hill
Stuart A. Rose Manuscript, Archives, and Rare Book Library
Emory University
Howard Washington Odum papers,1929-1936
{{DEFAULTSORT:Odum, Howard W 1884 births 1954 deaths American sociologists University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill faculty Emory University alumni Clark University alumni Columbia University alumni Presidents of the American Sociological Association People from Barrow County, Georgia Social Forces editors