Philip van Ness Myers (August 10, 1846 − September 17, 1937) was an American historian who was Professor of Economics and History at the
University of Cincinnati
The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati) is a public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1819 as Cincinnati College, it is the oldest institution of higher education in Cincinnati and has an annual enrollment of over 44, ...
and an author of several notable works on history.
Biography
Philip van Ness Myers was born in
Tribes Hill, New York on August 10, 1846. He attended Gilmore Academy at
Ballston Spa, New York
Ballston Spa is a village and the county seat of Saratoga County, New York, United States, located southwest of Saratoga Springs. The population of the village, named after Rev. Eliphalet Ball, a Congregationalist clergyman and an early settler, w ...
, and graduated from
Williams College
Williams College is a private liberal arts college in Williamstown, Massachusetts. It was established as a men's college in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim Williams, a colonist from the Province of Massachusetts Bay who was killed i ...
in 1871. From 1873 and 1874 Myers studied law at
Yale University
Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the worl ...
and took graduate a graduate course in economics.
In 1872, Myers joined a scientific mission to Europe,
Middle East
The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Province), East Thrace (Europea ...
and
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 ...
. Myers was accompanied on this journey by his older brother
Henry Morris Myers (1842–1872), who died while they returning from India. He is buried in
Ceylon
Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
.
[Lucy Ann (Morris) Carhart, Charles Alexander Nelson: ''Genealogy of the Morris family.'' Barnes, 1911, p. 458.] The product of his travels were the two books, ''Life and Nature Under the Tropics'' from his previous expedition to
South America 1867 also with his older brother, and ''Remains of Lost Empires''. These works won him widespread acclaim, and won him a master's degree from Williams College.
In 1879, Myers went to
Cincinnati to become President of Farmer's College on
College Hill, a famous Ohio educational institution whose graduates included
John Morgan Walden,
Murat Halstead and
Benjamin Harrison
Benjamin Harrison (August 20, 1833March 13, 1901) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 23rd president of the United States from 1889 to 1893. He was a member of the Harrison family of Virginia–a grandson of the ninth pre ...
.
Myers led Farmer's College until 1890, when he was appointed Professor of Economics and History at the
University of Cincinnati
The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati) is a public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1819 as Cincinnati College, it is the oldest institution of higher education in Cincinnati and has an annual enrollment of over 44, ...
. He managed to continue his work as a historian, publishing his ''Ancient History'' in 1882, and his ''Mediaeval and Modern History'' and ''General History'' in 1889. In the latter work Myers condensed into a single volume the history of humanity from the dawn of time up to the present. ''General History'' won him wide acclaim and established his fame as an authority on history. It was translated into a number of foreign languages, including
Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of v ...
and
Arabic
Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walte ...
. Myers was an early and vigorous advocate of the theory of
evolution
Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation ...
. Although this was a cause of bitter criticism from his peers, Myers held on to his convictions. He nevertheless remained on friendly terms with leaders of the church.
For the next ten years, Myers remained at the University of Cincinnati, serving as
dean
Dean may refer to:
People
* Dean (given name)
* Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin
* Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk
* Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean
Titles ...
of the academic faculty for three years. In the meantime he published his works ''Eastern Nations and Greece'' (1890), ''History of Rome'' (1890), ''History of Greece'' (1897), and ''Rome, Its Rise and Fall'' (1900). Since his retirement, Myers published his works ''The Middle Age'', ''The Modern Age'', and ''History as Past Ethics''.
A vigorous critic of the
German occupation of Belgium during World War I
The German occupation of Belgium (french: link=no, Occupation allemande, nl, Duitse bezetting) of World War I was a military occupation of Belgium by the forces of the German Empire between 1914 and 1918. Beginning in August 1914 with the ...
, Myers was awarded the
King Albert Medal by
Albert I of Belgium
Albert I (8 April 1875 – 17 February 1934) was King of the Belgians from 23 December 1909 until his death in 1934.
Born in Brussels as the fifth child and second son of Prince Philippe, Count of Flanders and Princess Marie of Hohenzollern-Si ...
when the latter visited the United States in 1919.
Myers was a member 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 ...
for more than 30 years, and was the recipient of honorary academic degrees from
Yale University
Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the worl ...
, the University of Cincinnati and
Belmont College
Belmont College is a public community college in St. Clairsville, Ohio. Main campus is located in St. Clairsville, Ohio, United States. The college was founded in 1971 and has served the Ohio Valley communities for over 30 years. Belmont offers ...
.
Myers died in Cincinnati on 17 September 1937. Upon his death, the
Cincinnati Enquirer
''The Cincinnati Enquirer'' is a morning daily newspaper published by Gannett in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. First published in 1841, the ''Enquirer'' is the last remaining daily newspaper in Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky, alth ...
noted that "his historical narratives have been studied by probably more high school and college students than similar works of any one man." Myers was survived by his wife Ida Cornelia Miller, whom he had married on July 20, 1876.
References
External links
*
Philip van Ness Myersat
Find a Grave
Find a Grave is a website that allows the public to search and add to an online database of cemetery records. It is owned by Ancestry.com. Its stated mission is "to help people from all over the world work together to find, record and present fin ...
Philip van Ness Myersat
Biblio.com
Philip van Ness Myersat the
Online Books Page
The Online Books Page is an index of e-text books available on the Internet. It is edited by John Mark Ockerbloom and is hosted by the library of the University of Pennsylvania. The Online Books Page lists over 2 million books and has several fea ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Myers, Philip van Ness
1846 births
1937 deaths
19th-century American historians
People from Montgomery County, New York
University of Cincinnati alumni
University of Cincinnati faculty
Yale University faculty
20th-century American historians
19th-century American male writers
20th-century American male writers
American male non-fiction writers
Historians from New York (state)