James Schouler (March 20, 1839 – April 16, 1920) was an American

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...

and

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 stu ...

best known for his historical work ''History of the United States under the Constitution, 1789–1865''.

Biography

Schouler was born in West Cambridge (now Arlington), Massachusetts. He was the son of

William Schouler William Schouler (December 31, 1814 – October 24, 1872) was an American journalist, politician and Adjutant General of Massachusetts during the American Civil War. Early life Schouler was born on December 31, 1814, in Kilbarchan, Renfrewshire, ...

, who from 1847 to 1853 edited the ''Boston Atlas'', one of the leading Whig journals of

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...

. The son graduated at

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

in 1859, studied

law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

and was admitted to the bar there in 1862. In 1869 he removed to

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...

, where for three years he published the ''United States Jurist''. After his return to Boston, in 1874, he devoted himself to office practice and to literary pursuits. He was a lecturer at

Boston University School of Law Boston University School of Law (Boston Law or BU Law) is the law school of Boston University, a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is consistently ranked among the top law schools in the United States and considered an eli ...

between 1885 and 1903, a non-resident professor and lecturer in the National University Law School, Washington, DC, in 1887–1909, and a lecturer on American history and constitutional law at

Johns Hopkins University Johns Hopkins University (Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1876, Johns Hopkins is the oldest research university in the United States and in the western hem ...

in 1908. Schouler is best known, however, as an historian. In 1896–1897 he was 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. Founded in 1884, the AHA works to protect academic freedom, develop professional s ...

. He was elected a member of the

American Antiquarian Society The American Antiquarian Society (AAS), located in Worcester, Massachusetts, is both a learned society and a national research library of pre-twentieth-century American history and culture. Founded in 1812, it is the oldest historical society in ...

in 1907. He died in

Intervale, New Hampshire Intervale is an unincorporated community in Carroll County, New Hampshire, located on the boundary between the towns of Bartlett and Conway in the White Mountains Region. The village is part of the Mount Washington Valley, a resort area that als ...

on April 16, 1920.

Works

His most important work is ''History of the United States under the Constitution, 1789–1865'' (7 vols, 1880–1917) whose components include: *v. 1. 1783–1801. Rule of Federalism. *v. 2. 1801–1817
Jefferson Republicans
*v. 3. 1817–1831. Era of good feeling. *v. 4. 1831–1847
Democrats and Whigs
*v. 5. 1847–1861
Free soil controversy
*v. 6. 1861–1865
The civil war
*v. 7. 1865-1877. History of the Reconstruction Period. Among his other publications are: *''A Life of Thomas Jefferson'' (1893)
''Historical Briefs''
(1896) *''Constitutional Studies, State and Federal'' (1897) *''Life of

Alexander Hamilton Alexander Hamilton (January 11, 1755 or 1757July 12, 1804) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first United States secretary of the treasury from 1789 to 1795. Born out of wedlock in Charlest ...

'' (1901) *''Americans of 1776'' (1906) *''Ideals of the Republic'' (1908) His legal treatises are: *''The Law of Domestic Relations'' (1870) *''The Law of Personal Property'' (1872–1876; new ed., 1907) *''The Law of Bailments'' (1880) *''The Law of Executors and Administrators'' (1883) *''The Law of Husband and Wife'' (1882) *''The Law of Wills'' (1910)

Notes

References

* *

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Schouler, James 1839 births 1920 deaths Harvard University alumni Boston University faculty Johns Hopkins University faculty American historians American legal scholars Massachusetts lawyers Presidents of the American Historical Association Members of the American Antiquarian Society 19th-century American lawyers