Robert K. Murray (April 9, 1922 – February 9, 2019) was an American professor of history at the
Pennsylvania State University
The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsylvan ...
for 35 years, best known for ''The Harding Era'' (1969), a biography of US President
Warren G. Harding
Warren Gamaliel Harding (November 2, 1865 – August 2, 1923) was the 29th president of the United States, serving from 1921 until his death in 1923. A member of the Republican Party, he was one of the most popular sitting U.S. presidents. A ...
, which won a History
Book of the Month Club
Book of the Month (founded 1926) is a United States subscription-based e-commerce service that offers a selection of five to seven new hardcover books each month to its members. Books are selected and endorsed by a panel of judges, and members c ...
selection, McNight Distinguished Book Award, and
Phi Alpha Theta
Phi Alpha Theta () is an American honor society for undergraduate and graduate students and professors of history.
It has more than 400,000 members, with new members numbering about 9,000 a year through its 970 chapters.
Founding
Phi Alpha The ...
National Book award.
Background
Robert Keith Murray was born on April 9, 1922, in
Union City, Indiana
Union City is a city in Wayne Township, Randolph County, Indiana, United States. , the city had a population of 3,584.
Union City was a stop along the Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad, a forerunner of the Pennsylvania Rail ...
. His parents were Darrell Richard and Orpha Alice Michael Murray. He attended public schools in
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...
. In 1943, he earned both BA and BS degrees. In 1943, he earned an MA and in 1949 a doctorate in Modern American History from
Ohio State University
The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best publ ...
.
[
]
Career
During World War II, Murray served as a Signal Intelligence Specialist in Europe. Immediately after the war, he served in the National Security Agency
The National Security Agency (NSA) is a national-level intelligence agency of the United States Department of Defense, under the authority of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI). The NSA is responsible for global monitoring, collecti ...
.[
Murray began his long academic career as instructor in History at Ohio State University. In 1949, he joined ]Pennsylvania State University
The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsylvan ...
. In 1959, he became full professor of American History. He headed History Department (1959 to 1969). He served as assistant graduate dean (1964 to 1967). He helped develop and plan Penn State's Kern Graduate Center. In 1974, Murray became a Senior Fellow in the Institute for the Arts and Humanities. In 1984, he retired from Penn State after 35 years there.[
Murray helped open the Harding Papers to the public (thought burned), based on which he wrote ''The Harding Era'' (1969) (see Awards and Works sections, below).][
Outside of academics, Murray served as an institutional ]Peace Corps
The Peace Corps is an independent agency and program of the United States government that trains and deploys volunteers to provide international development assistance. It was established in March 1961 by an executive order of President John F. ...
representative (1961–1963), special consultant to the American Council on Education
The American Council on Education (ACE) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) U.S. higher education association established in 1918. ACE's members are the leaders of approximately 1,700 accredited, degree-granting colleges and universities and higher education ...
(1962–1964), member of the National Archives Commission (1971–1976), and referee for the National Endowment for the Humanities
The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) is an independent federal agency of the U.S. government, established by thNational Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965(), dedicated to supporting research, education, preserv ...
.[
]
Personal life and death
On December 7, 1943, Murray married Evelyn Fay Keller (died 2015); they had two daughters and a son.[
Beyond Penn State, Murray 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 ...
, the Organization of American Historians
The Organization of American Historians (OAH), formerly known as the Mississippi Valley Historical Association, is the largest professional society dedicated to the teaching and study of American history. OAH's members in the U.S. and abroad inc ...
, the National Education Association
The National Education Association (NEA) is the largest labor union in the United States. It represents public school teachers and other support personnel, faculty and staffers at colleges and universities, retired educators, and college stude ...
, the Pennsylvania Historical Association, and American Association of University Professors
The American Association of University Professors (AAUP) is an organization of professors and other academics in the United States. AAUP membership includes over 500 local campus chapters and 39 state organizations.
The AAUP's stated mission is ...
.
Murray died aged 96 on February 9, 2019, in Tampa, Florida.[
]
Awards
* 1970:
** Research Service award from the State of Ohio
Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...
[
** History ]Book of the Month Club
Book of the Month (founded 1926) is a United States subscription-based e-commerce service that offers a selection of five to seven new hardcover books each month to its members. Books are selected and endorsed by a panel of judges, and members c ...
selection for ''The Harding Era''[
** McNight Distinguished Book Award for ''The Harding Era''][
** Phi Alpha Theta National Book award for ''The Harding Era''][
* 1976: History ]Book of the Month Club
Book of the Month (founded 1926) is a United States subscription-based e-commerce service that offers a selection of five to seven new hardcover books each month to its members. Books are selected and endorsed by a panel of judges, and members c ...
selection for ''103rd Ballot''[
* 1978: Distinguished Alumnus of Ohio State][
* 1979: Life Membership in the National Speliological Society for ''Trapped''
* 1984: Honorary Life Member, Organization of American Historians][
]
Works
Murray wrote or co-wrote more than six books, more than 30 articles, and many book chapters and book reviews.[
Books:
* ''Public Opinion and the American Red Cross'' (1950)
* ''Red Scare: A Study in National Hysteria, 1919–1920'' (1955)
* ''The Harding Era: Warren G. Harding and His Administration'' (1969)
* ''The Politics of Normalcy: Governmental Theory and Practice in the Harding-Coolidge Era'' (1973)
* ''The 103rd Ballot: Democrats and the Disaster in Madison Square Garden'' (1976)
* ''Trapped!: The Story of Floyd Collins'' (1979)
* ''Greatness in the White House'' (1989)]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Murray, Robert K.
1922 births
2019 deaths
20th-century American historians
20th-century American male writers
Ohio State University Graduate School alumni
American male non-fiction writers
American military personnel of World War II
Pennsylvania State University faculty