John Duncan Ernst Spaeth (September 27, 1868 − July 26, 1954) was an American philologist. A professor of English at

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial Colleges, fourth-oldest ins ...

and later President of the

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. Tw ...

, Spaeth was considered one of the foremost authorities on

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

in the United States.

Biography

John Duncan Spaeth was born in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

on September 27, 1868. His father, Rev. Dr. Adolph Spaeth, was a native of

Esslingen am Neckar Esslingen am Neckar ( Swabian: ''Esslenga am Neckor'') is a town in the Stuttgart Region of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany, seat of the District of Esslingen as well as the largest town in the district. Within Baden-Württemberg it is t ...

, Germany. His mother, Marie Dorothea Duncan, was a native of

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

, Scotland. The two had met while Adolph was the tutor to the

Duke of Argyll Duke of Argyll ( gd, Diùc Earraghàidheil) is a title created in the peerage of Scotland in 1701 and in the peerage of the United Kingdom in 1892. The earls, marquesses, and dukes of Argyll were for several centuries among the most powerful ...

. After completing high school in Philadelphia, Spaeth attended the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

, where he was active sportsman, graduating with a degree in philology in 1887. He received his doctorate in philology from

Leipzig University Leipzig University (german: Universität Leipzig), in Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, is one of the world's oldest universities and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. The university was founded on 2 December ...

in 1892, and subsequently continued his studies in France and Italy. Since 1895 he was on the faculty of Central High School in New Jersey, where he taught English and helped form the Athletic Commission. In 1905 Spaeth was appointed Professor of English at

by university president

Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...

. The adult educational project initiated by Spaeth at Princeton would since be expanded to all parts of the United States. At Princeton, Spaeth was active as an amateur rowing coach, and is thus referred to as the "father of rowing" at Princeton University. Spaeth retired from Princeton in 1936, subsequently becoming the first president of the University of Kansas City. After retiring from the University of Kansas City, Spaeth became a lecturer at

Haverford College Haverford College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Haverford, Pennsylvania. It was founded as a men's college in 1833 by members of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), began accepting non-Quakers in 1849, and became coeducational ...

and taught Shakespearean literature at the adult educational program in Merion, which was attended by many prominent Philadelphia educators. Spaeth was the author of several papers on

English literature English literature is literature written in the English language from United Kingdom, its crown dependencies, the Republic of Ireland, the United States, and the countries of the former British Empire. ''The Encyclopaedia Britannica'' defines E ...

, and was a member of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science The American Academy of Political and Social Science (AAPSS) was founded in 1889 to promote progress in the social sciences. Sparked by Professor Edmund J. James and drawing from members of the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania, Swarthmo ...

, the

Modern Language Association The Modern Language Association of America, often referred to as the Modern Language Association (MLA), is widely considered the principal professional association in the United States for scholars of language and literature. The MLA aims to "st ...

Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States, and the most prestigious, due in part to its long history and academic selectivity. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal a ...

and various other societies Spaeth's first wife, Marie Tinette Hauhgton, died in 1937. He married Mrs. Amy Fielding, widow of the architect

Mantle Fielding Mantle Fielding, Jr. (September 30, 1865 – March 27, 1941) was an American architect, art historian, and tennis player. Career Fielding was born in Manhattan to Mantle Fielding (1837–1890) and Anne Margaret Stone (''maiden''; 1838–1906). H ...

, in 1942. Spaeth died at his home in

Wayne, Pennsylvania Wayne is an unincorporated community centered in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, on the Main Line, a series of highly affluent Philadelphia suburbs located along the railroad tracks of the Pennsylvania Railroad and one of the wealthiest areas ...

on July 26, 1954, and was survived by four children.

Bibliography

Notes

References

* * Retrieved August 23, 2022 – via

Google Books Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google Inc. that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical c ...

. ; .

{{DEFAULTSORT:Spaeth, John Duncan 1868 births 1954 deaths American people of German descent American people of Scottish descent American philologists Haverford College faculty Leipzig University alumni People from Philadelphia Princeton University faculty University of Kansas faculty University of Pennsylvania alumni