Henry Davidson Sheldon (October 3, 1874 – May 14, 1948) was an American educator and historian. Sheldon was born while his parents were en route to

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

from the

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area. He was educated at the University of the Pacific and

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...

. He continued his education at

Clark University Clark University is a private research university in Worcester, Massachusetts. Founded in 1887 with a large endowment from its namesake Jonas Gilman Clark, a prominent businessman, Clark was one of the first modern research universities in the ...

, where he received a doctorate in education. In 1900, Sheldon began working at the

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a public research university in Eugene, Oregon. Founded in 1876, the institution is well known for its strong ties to the sports apparel and marketing firm Nike, Inc, and its co-founder, billion ...

as a professor of education and history. With the child-centered school as their focus, he and his colleagues, Joseph Schafer, O. F. Stafford and Herbert C. Howe, worked to professionalize teacher training, raise state certification requirements, broaden the curricula of the university, and extend its reach through correspondence courses, extension classes, and summer school. Sheldon also worked hard to increase financial support for the university. Sheldon left the university for almost a full year from 1911–1912 for a sabbatical in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

and

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. In 1913, he returned to Oregon to serve as dean of the School of Education. In the 1920s, he wrote a history of the state of Oregon. He followed this in the 1930s with a history of the University of Oregon. In 1933, Sheldon contracted

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...

and remained in the state tuberculosis hospital until 1935. In 1942, he retired to emeritus status, continuing to teach only American civilization and the history of education. Sheldon retired from all teaching in 1947. He died in 1948, leaving behind a wife and two children. Henry D. Sheldon High School in

Eugene, Oregon Eugene ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Oregon. It is located at the southern end of the Willamette Valley, near the confluence of the McKenzie and Willamette rivers, about east of the Oregon Coast. As of the 2020 United States Census, Eu ...

, and a residence hall in the Earl Complex at the University of Oregon are named after him.

Bibliography

* ''A Critical and Descriptive Bibliography of the History of Education in the State of Oregon''. Eugene: University of Oregon Press, 1929. * ''Student Life and Customs''. Ayer Co Pub, 1975.

References

*Hitchman, James H. ''Henry Davidson Sheldon and the University of Oregon, 1874-1948: a Biographical Essay with Selected Letters''. Bellingham: Western Washington University, Center for Pacific Northwest, 1979. {{DEFAULTSORT:Sheldon, Henry D. 1874 births 1948 deaths Stanford University alumni Clark University alumni University of Oregon faculty Stanford Graduate School of Education alumni