Guide to the Lacey Baldwin Smith (1922- ) Papers
| Collection Title: | Lacey Baldwin Smith (1922- ) Papers |
| Dates: | 1942-2003 |
| Identification: | 11/3/16/26 |
| Creator: | Smith, Lacey Baldwin, 1922- |
| Extent: | 15 Boxes |
| Language of Materials: | English |
| Abstract: | Tudor historian Lacey Baldwin Smith (born 1922) taught at Northwestern University from 1955-1993. His papers fill 15 boxes and consist largely of correspondence between Smith and colleagues, students, and business associates. |
| Acquisition Information: | Files donated from Herbert Andrews via R.W. Leopold include Accession No. 86-201. Files from R.W. Leopold are Accession No. 85-186, and files donated from Lacey Baldwin Smith include Accession Nos. 05-6, 03-29 and 07-31. Materials from the Archives' Faculty Biographical file have been integrated into this collection. |
| Processing Information: | Regina Gorham July 2008 |
| Separated Materials: | Approximately one cubic foot of duplicate or extraneous materials was discarded. |
| Conditions Governing Access: | Files relating to Smith's service on tenure committees and files relating to student exams and evaluations are restricted. Permission to use the restricted files must be obtained from the History Department Chair. |
| Repository: | Northwestern University Archives Deering Library, Room 110 1970 Campus Dr. Evanston, IL, 60208-2300 URL: http://www.library.northwestern.edu/archives Email: archives@northwestern.edu Phone: 847-491-3354 |
Biographical/Historical Information
Lacey Baldwin Smith, professor of history at Northwestern University, was born on October 3, 1922. After teaching at various universities, Smith came to Northwestern in 1955 as an associate professor in the History department. During his career, Smith won many awards, including two Fulbrights and a Guggenheim Fellowship. Smith remained at Northwestern even past his retirement in 1993, staying in the capacity of a guest-professor.
Smith's father was a professor of art and archaeology at Princeton University. For his B.S., Lacey B. Smith attended Bowdoin College, graduating in 1946. He was stationed in Bangalore, India with the United States Army Air Corps from 1943-1946, an experience which he drew upon for a later publication. He continued his education, receiving an M.A. in history from Princeton University in 1949. For the year of 1949-1950, he was a Fulbright Scholar at London University, returning to Princeton to finish up his Ph.D. in history in 1951, his dissertation entitled “Tudor Prelates and Politics (1536-1558)”.
After graduating, Smith stayed at Princeton, teaching history for two years, and then moved on to an Assistant Professor position at M.I.T. in 1953. In 1955 he took an Associate Professor position in the history department at Northwestern University (despite M.I.T.'s efforts to keep him), and by 1962 he was a full Professor at Northwestern. At Northwestern, Smith served as Chairman of the History department twice (1971-1972; 1974-1977), as well as Director of the Humanities Program, 1983-1985, and was named Peter B. Ritzma Professor in the Humanities in 1985. In 1993 he was officially given Emeritus status upon his retirement, but continued his relationship with Northwestern through guest-professor positions. Outside of Northwestern he held positions in committees and on boards in the American Historical Association, the American Historical Review, the Conference on British Studies, and served as an editor of the Journal of Modern History.
Smith's many publications include This Realm of England, 1399-1689, (1966) volume II of the textbook series A History of England, and arguably was his most popular book. Smith's main historical focus was 16th and 17th century England, with a keen interest in Tudor royalty, including Henry VIII, Catherine Howard and Elizabeth I. His first published books focus specifically on these figures, including his 1971 book Henry VIII: The Mask of Royalty, and A Tudor Tragedy, the Life and Times of Catherine Howard (1961), which both received some popular acclaim. He published many articles, focusing again on the Tudor period, penning entries for both the Collier Encyclopedia (1960) and the Encyclopedia Britannica (1971), as well as many book reviews.
In his correspondence with students, friends and colleagues, Smith retained an approachability and kindness in all his letters, which garnered much respect and admiration from his colleagues in and outside of the Northwestern community. The various honors and awards bestowed upon him from either the National Endowment for the Humanities or student groups at Northwestern all speak to his character.
Smith married Jean Reeder (who received an M.A. in history from Northwestern), in 1961, and they had three children: MacAllister, Dennison, and Katherine.
Scope and Content
The Lacey Baldwin Smith Papers fill 15 boxes and span the years 1942-2003, with the bulk of the materials dating from 1970 to 1990. The papers document Smith's teaching career, painting a clear picture of the activities of a publishing academic. His correspondence with colleagues such as the important English Reformation historians G.R. Elton and A.G. Dickens places Smith at the cusp of the shift to the Revisionist movement in English Reformation history and historiography.
The papers include biographical materials, correspondence, and files relating to Northwestern University Committees (Restricted), department business, teaching, and publications.
The biographical materials date from 1942 to 2002 and include curriculum vitae, materials relating to his education, honors and awards. Clippings document both personal events, such as his engagement to his future wife, and professional activities and achievements.
General correspondence forms the largest part of the collection, spanning the years 1955 to 2002, including incoming and outgoing correspondence. Correspondence is arranged chronologically. His correspondence with Northwestern students revels not only a willingness to help students while in his classes, but a dedication to helping them after graduation by recommending them to colleagues and supporting their efforts to obtain grants.
Subject correspondence includes files specifically devoted to friends and colleagues. A large amount of correspondence with publishers reflects Smith's extensive writing career. In particular, the files relating to D.C. Heath & Co. and Jonathan Cape, Limited, discuss various book projects, possible project ideas, compensation and deadlines. Correspondence with organizations documents Smith's involvement in the American Historical Association, the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Conference on British Studies. The subject files are organized alphabetically by topic or name within the given category. Within each folder, materials are arranged chronologically.
Files pertaining to Smith's career at Northwestern University include administrative and teaching files. Administrative files are arranged alphabetically by topic and date between 1962 and 1991. Correspondence on Development includes fundraising for the department as well as for the Humanities Program as a whole, including files on lecture and scholarship funds, and the Presidential Fund for the Humanities. Files relating to the Graduate Program include the Ad Hoc Committee for changing the Graduate Program, the Curriculum Committee, and Evaluations of Grading procedures and the Graduate Program as a whole. History/Humanities Department files contain notes and memos from Smith in regard to the Holocaust Lecture Series he helped bring to the campus, as well as to the Council of Chairmen.
The Northwestern University Committee Files date from 1971-1994, including files on various Ad Hoc committees for tenure and promotion, the Hearings and Appeals Board and professor searches. These files are restricted.
Smith's Teaching files date from 1955-2001, and include class syllabi, exams, student evaluations and papers, and letters of recommendation. They are organized by class, including files containing his syllabi and exams, followed by files on specific graduate students, including Student Papers and Letters of Recommendation.
Publications/Manuscripts dates from 1951-2003 and includes unidentified manuscripts, unpublished manuscripts which include titles like “The Old Fox” and a proposal for a later published book (Fools, Martyrs, Traitors), as well as Vol. II of his dissertation, which includes the bibliography and notes as well as Chapter 10 (Epilogue) of the text. Re-prints, including “Showdown with Spain: Drake Beats the Armada” in The British Empire magazine, and articles including “Henry VIII and the Protestant Triumph”, as well as posters and lecture texts are also included. The Publications files are arranged chronologically.
The files in Publications: Reviews include reviews of Smith's various books, including some reviews in German (and one in French) on books from A Tudor Tragedy (Die fünfte Frau) to his work Fools, Martyrs, Traitors: The Story of Martyrdom in the Western World. These files also include many reviews written by Smith and all range from 1956-2001.
Subjects
Personal Name
Subjects
History--Study and teaching (Higher)--Illinois--Evanston
