Reinhard Henry Luthin (January 26, 1905 – November 24, 1962) was a historian best known for his contribution to the history of President
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...
. He was a noted professor of history at
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 ...
, with a lifelong interest in facts regarding Lincoln's life and times.
Life and career
He was born on January 26, 1905 in
Manhattan, New York City
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the List of co ...
.
Dr. Luthin, a Fulbright Scholar, graduated from Columbia University with honors in History in June 1934. Later he received his doctoral degree from Columbia University where he co-authored ''Lincoln and the Patronage'' with the Dean of Columbia University (1943–1950),
Harry Carman
Harry Carman (January 22, 1884 – December 26, 1964) was an American historian. Having attended Syracuse University followed by studies at Columbia, he became a professor at the latter, and served from 1943 to 1950 he served as its dean. During h ...
. ''New York Times'' writer, Theodore Mack, was quoted as saying "the conclusion of the authors at the end of this enlightening and scholarly work does credit to the time and energy that must have gone into it."
As a
Fulbright Scholar
The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people of ...
, he studied and taught as a Professor of American and European history at the University of Decca, Pakistan, for one year. In 1947, Columbia University received a $1.5 million bequest from Frederic Bancroft, a former librarian, author and lecturer. He requested that this money be used for the expansion of Columbia University's research resources in American history. Through this bequest, Luthin was hired to the library staff. It was here, in the position of bibliographer, that he expanded the collection of American books and other literary items.
In addition to his teaching at Columbia University, Luthin taught as a visiting lecturer at
Trinity College (Connecticut)
Trinity College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Hartford, Connecticut. Founded as Washington College in 1823, it is the second-oldest college in the state of Connecticut.
Coed ...
, the
College of William & Mary
The College of William & Mary (officially The College of William and Mary in Virginia, abbreviated as William & Mary, W&M) is a public research university in Williamsburg, Virginia. Founded in 1693 by letters patent issued by King William III ...
and before retirement taught at the
University of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a public state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The university is composed of 17 undergraduate and graduate schools and colleges at its urban Pittsburgh campus, home to the universit ...
. He was a former fellow in history at
Duke University
Duke University is a private research university in Durham, North Carolina. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco and electric power industrialist James ...
. President
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination ...
, in his 1955 book ''
Profiles in Courage
''Profiles in Courage'' is a 1956 volume of short biographies describing acts of bravery and integrity by eight United States Senators. The book profiles senators who defied the opinions of their party and constituents to do what they felt was ...
'', referenced Luthin's ''American Demagogues'' as one of his sources.
Luthin died of cancer at age 57 at his home in
Manhattan, New York City
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the List of co ...
.
Book reviews
*Roots Go Deep, ''The New York Times'', Frank Adams, November 29, 1954 regarding "American Demagogues" Luthin 1959.
*Mr. Lincoln from Illinois, Theodore Mack, ''The New York Times'', June 6, 1943.
Web reference
”Reinhard Luthin, A Biographer, 57, Ex-Columbia Teacher Dies of Cancer, Wrote of Lincoln“ ''The NY Times'' November 26, 1962
Authored works
*The Real Abraham Lincoln; A complete one volume history of his life and times. R. Luthin (1960).
*The First Lincoln Campaign. R. Luthin (1964).
*Abraham Lincoln and the Tariff. R. Luthin (1944).
*Lincoln and the Patronage. Harry Carman and Reinhard H. Luthin (1943).
*Pennsylvania and Lincoln's rise to Presidency. R. Luthin (1943).
*Some Demagogues in American History. American Historical Review R. Luthin (1954).
*The First Lincoln Campaign. R. Luthin (1964).
*A Discordant Chapter in Lincoln's Administration; The Davis Blair Controversy. R. Luthin (1944).
*Abraham Lincoln became a Republican. R. Luthin (1944).
*Lincoln and the American Tradition. R. Luthin (1951).
*Indiana and Lincoln's Rise to Presidency. R. Luthin (1942).
*American Demagogues: Twentieth Century. R. Luthin (1954). Beacon Press, Boston.
*Organizing the Republican Party in the "Border-Slave" Regions: Edward Bates Presidential Candidacy in 1860. R. Luthin (1944).
*The Seward-Fillmore Feud and the Crisis of 1850. Carman, Harry J., and Reinhard H. Luthin. New York History (April 1943): 163–84
References
* Adams, Effie Kaye; ''Experiences of a Fulbright Teacher'', 1956.
* "Columbia Expands History Research; $1,509,389 Gift to be used to widen resources in American Field", ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', April 1947.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Luthin, Reinhart H.
1905 births
1962 deaths
College of William & Mary faculty
Columbia University alumni
Columbia University faculty
Trinity College (Connecticut) faculty
University of Pittsburgh faculty
20th-century American historians
American male non-fiction writers
Historians of Abraham Lincoln
20th-century American male writers