Margaret Clapp
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Margaret Antoinette Clapp (April 10, 1910 – May 3, 1974) was an American scholar, educator and
Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made h ...
winner. She was the president of
Wellesley College Wellesley College is a private women's liberal arts college in Wellesley, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1870 by Henry and Pauline Durant as a female seminary, it is a member of the original Seven Sisters Colleges, an unofficial g ...
from 1949-1966. During her presidency, she was able to make many improvements to the college campus by increasing the number of faculty members and increasing financial aid for students. Other accomplishments of note during her tenure construction and remodeling of major campus buildings as well as increasing the college endowment fund. After her presidency, she moved to
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
in order to experience a new culture, stating that living in a different country with a different culture gave her a new perspective on her own culture. During her time there, she became the Minister Counselor of Public Affairs for the
United States Embassy The United States has the second most diplomatic missions of any country in the world after Mainland China, including 166 of the 193 member countries of the United Nations, as well as observer state Vatican City and non-member countries Kosovo a ...
, becoming the first woman to hold such a position. In addition, she was the chief cultural officer for the United States Information Service India for three years. She was also the principal of the
Lady Doak College Lady Doak College (LDC) is the first women's college in Madurai in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It was founded in 1948 by Katie Wilcox, an American missionary near Tallakulam in Madurai. Today there are around 3200 students. This nu ...
in
Madurai Madurai ( , also , ) is a major city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the cultural capital of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Madurai District. As of the 2011 census, it was the third largest Urban agglomeration in ...
for two years. She stayed in India until 1971, when she returned to her
Berkshire Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Berk ...
home to retire.


Biography

Clapp was born in
East Orange, New Jersey East Orange is a City (New Jersey), city in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 69,612. The city was List of municipalities in ...
on April 10, 1910 to parents Alfred Chapin Clapp and Anna (Roth) Clapp. She had two brothers, future American politician
Alfred C Alfred may refer to: Arts and entertainment *''Alfred J. Kwak'', Dutch-German-Japanese anime television series * ''Alfred'' (Arne opera), a 1740 masque by Thomas Arne * ''Alfred'' (Dvořák), an 1870 opera by Antonín Dvořák *"Alfred (Interlu ...
. and Oliver H. Clapp, and one sister, Lois Clapp Olds. In 1926 she graduated from
East Orange High School East Orange High School was a comprehensive community public high school serving students in ninth through twelfth grades from 1891 to 2002 in East Orange, in Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. For most of its existence, the school ...
and
Wellesley College Wellesley College is a private women's liberal arts college in Wellesley, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1870 by Henry and Pauline Durant as a female seminary, it is a member of the original Seven Sisters Colleges, an unofficial g ...
in 1930. She taught English literature at the
Todhunter School The Dalton School, originally the Children's University School, is a private, coeducational college preparatory school in New York City and a member of both the Ivy Preparatory School League and the New York Interschool. The school is located in ...
for Girls in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
for twelve years while working on her master's degree, which she obtained from
Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
in 1937.Margaret Antoinette Clapp
Encyclopedia of world Biography
During and after World War II, she taught history at
City College of New York The City College of the City University of New York (also known as the City College of New York, or simply City College or CCNY) is a public university within the City University of New York (CUNY) system in New York City. Founded in 1847, Cit ...
,
Douglass College Douglass Residential College, is an undergraduate, non degree granting higher education program of Rutgers University-New Brunswick for women. It succeeded the liberal arts degree-granting Douglass College after it was merged with the other unde ...
, Columbia University, and
Brooklyn College Brooklyn College is a public university in Brooklyn, Brooklyn, New York. It is part of the City University of New York system and enrolls about 15,000 undergraduate and 2,800 graduate students on a 35-acre campus. Being New York City's first publ ...
. While she was president of Wellesley College from 1949 until her retirement in 1966, the college's resources and facilities were expanded substantially. Clapp was a strong advocate of careers for women. She was elected a Fellow of the
American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and ...
in 1952. After leaving Wellesley, Clapp served briefly as administrator of
Lady Doak College Lady Doak College (LDC) is the first women's college in Madurai in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It was founded in 1948 by Katie Wilcox, an American missionary near Tallakulam in Madurai. Today there are around 3200 students. This nu ...
, a women's college in
Madurai, India Madurai ( , also , ) is a major city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the cultural capital of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Madurai District. As of the 2011 census, it was the third largest Urban agglomeration in T ...
, then as United States cultural attaché to India, then as minister-councilor of public affairs in the
United States Information Agency The United States Information Agency (USIA), which operated from 1953 to 1999, was a United States agency devoted to "public diplomacy". In 1999, prior to the reorganization of intelligence agencies by President George W. Bush, President Bill C ...
until her retirement in 1971. Clapp died of cancer on May 3, 1974 at the age of 64 in her
Tyringham, Massachusetts Tyringham is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 427 at the 2020 census. History Founded as Housatonic Township Number 1, the land which becam ...
home. A memorial service was held June 1, 1974 in Houghton Memorial Chapel on the Wellesley campus.


Honorary degrees and awards

Margaret Clapp's doctoral dissertation at Columbia grew into the biography ''Forgotten First Citizen:
John Bigelow John Bigelow Sr. (November 25, 1817 – December 19, 1911) was an American lawyer, statesman, and historian who edited the complete works of Benjamin Franklin and the first autobiography of Franklin taken from Franklin's previously lost original ...
'' published in 1947 and winner of the 1948
Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography The Pulitzer Prize for Biography is one of the seven American Pulitzer Prizes that are annually awarded for Letters, Drama, and Music. It has been presented since 1917 for a distinguished biography, autobiography or memoir by an American author o ...
. Clapp received honorary degrees from Smith College in 1949 and Wheaton College in 1960. In 1970, she received an honorary doctorate from Wellesley College. Wellesley College's library was renamed the Margaret Clapp Library in 1974, in honor of Clapp.


Books

* ''Forgotten First Citizen: John Bigelow'' (
Little, Brown Little, Brown and Company is an American publishing company founded in 1837 by Charles Coffin Little and James Brown in Boston. For close to two centuries it has published fiction and nonfiction by American authors. Early lists featured Emily D ...
, 1947) * ''The Modern University'' (Cornell University Press, 1950), edited by Clapp * ''Margaret Clapp's Chapel Talks: a sampling'' (Wellesley College, 1980)


See also

*
List of covers of Time magazine (1940s) This is a list of people and other topics appearing on the cover of ''Time'' magazine in the 1940s. ''Time'' was first published in 1923. As ''Time'' became established as one of the United States' leading news magazines, an appearance on the co ...
– Clapp was on the cover October 10, 1949


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Clapp, Margaret 1910 births 1974 deaths East Orange High School alumni Presidents of Wellesley College Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography winners Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Columbia University alumni Columbia University faculty Wellesley College alumni People from East Orange, New Jersey Place of death missing Brooklyn College faculty American biographers American women biographers 20th-century American women Women heads of universities and colleges 20th-century American academics