Background
Sproat, John Gerald was born on April 1, 1921 in Los Angeles, California, United States. Son of John Gerald and Grace (Elwell) Drummond Sproat.
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book
"The Best Men": Liberal Reformers in the Gilded Age
("The Best Men": Liberal Reformers In The Gilded Age, by S...)
"The Best Men": Liberal Reformers In The Gilded Age, by Sproat, John G.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0006BTQS0/?tag=2022091-20
The Best Men: Liberal Reformers in the Gilded Age
( "The mugwumps have won praise from historians who accep...)
"The mugwumps have won praise from historians who accepted their strictures against late nineteenth-century society. This book challenges both that indictment of society and mugwump beliefs. Scholars can no longer laud 'independents' for opposing alleged corruption without recognizing that they hated coalition party government in a pluralistic society and that they were elitists who bitterly opposed the democratizing tendencies of their time.... Sproat writes with pungent clarity, and his work is well organized around original research; it is an outstanding book and a welcome addition to the current re-examination of the Gilded Age." - H. Wayne Morgan, American Historical Review "It is doubtful if the 'snivel service reformers' of the Gilded Age have ever had a more thorough roasting than John G. Sproat has given them in his excellent... book, significantly named 'The Best Men.' It is disconcerting to reflect that the Liberal Republicans, mordant in wit as many of them were, might not understand were they now alive, that Professor Sproat is teasing them in his title with a phrase they loved to use to describe themselves.... 'The Best Men' is required reading for the Gilded Age, an elegantly conceived and beautifully written book, a fine addition to nineteenth-century historiography." - Willie Lee Rose, Journal of Southern History
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0226769909/?tag=2022091-20
John Gerald Sproat
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John Gerald Sproat, American historian, educator. Grantee, National Endowment of the Humanities, 1976-1977, 1979, 1985, Shell Foundation, 1967, 1970, 1973, Lilly Endowment, 1966-1967. Past president, trustee Columbia Museum Art; president Historic Columbia Foundation, 1997-1999. With United States Army Air Force, 1941-1945. Member American History Association, Organization American Historians, Southern History Association, Summit Club.
Education
Bachelor, San Jose State College, 1950. Master of Arts, University California-Berkeley, 1952. Doctor of Philosophy, University California-Berkeley, 1959.
Career
Instructor Michigan State University, 1956-1957. Assistant professor Williams College, 1957-1963. Professor Lake Forest College, Illinois, 1963-1974.
Professor history University South Carolina, Columbia, 1974-1992, chairman department, 1974-1983. District professor emeritus, from 1992. Senior fellow Institute for Southern Studies, from 1992.
Fulbright professor Hamburg University, Federal Republic Germany, 1961-1962. Visiting fellow Cambridge University, England, 1970. Visiting professor University California, Berkeley, 1972.
Fulbright professor University Munich, Federal Republic Germany, 1982, Indonesia, 1993-1994. American participant lecturer United States Information Agency, India, Pakistan, 1987. Member South Carolina Commission Archives and History, 1974-1983, chairman, 1979-1983.
Member South Carolina Board Review History Places, 1974-1986, chairman, 1978-1983. Delegate American Council Learned Societies.
Achievements
Works
book
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The Best Men: Liberal Reformers in the Gilded Age
( "The mugwumps have won praise from historians who accep...)
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"The Best Men": Liberal Reformers in the Gilded Age
("The Best Men": Liberal Reformers In The Gilded Age, by S...)
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The Best Men: Liberal Reformers in the Gilded Age
Membership
Past president, trustee Columbia Museum Art. President Historic Columbia Foundation, 1997-1999. With United States Army Air Force, 1941-1945.
Member American History Association, Organization American Historians, Southern History Association, Summit Club.
Connections
Married Ruth Christensen, March 18, 1967. 1 child by previous marriage, Barbara.
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Born
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Died
March 14, 2008 (aged 86) -
Nationality
American
Education
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1950
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1952
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1959
Career
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1956 - 1957
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1957 - 1963
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1963 - 1974
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1974 - 1992