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William H. McClain papers

 Collection
Identifier: MS-0619

Scope and Contents

Subject files reflecting McClain's personal and professional interests and postcards collected by and mailed to McClain. The collection spans the 1950s through 1994, with the bulk of materials beginning in the late 1970s.

Dates

  • Creation: 1950s-1994
  • Creation: Majority of material found within 1970 - 1994

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is housed off-site and requires 48-hours' notice for retrieval. Please contact Special Collections for more information.

Collection is open for use.

Conditions Governing Use

Single copies may be made for research purposes. Researchers are responsible for determining any copyright questions. It is not necessary to seek our permission as the owner of the physical work to publish or otherwise use public domain materials that we have made available for use, unless Johns Hopkins University holds the copyright.

Biographical / Historical

William H. McClain was born in Cleveland, OH in 1917. He graduated from Case Western Reserve University in 1939 and later enrolled at University of Madison-Wisconsin, where he received his PhD in 1943. McClain joined the Department of German at Johns Hopkins University in 1953 and retired in 1982, serving as Professor Emeritus until the end of his life. He served as chairman of the Department of German from 1972 to 1979, president of the local chapter of Phi Beta Kappa, and also chaired during its final years the Humanities Group (1968-70), the last instrument of interdepartmental self-government among the Hopkins humanists. McClain was also active in professional and cultural organizations including MLA, SAMLA, AATG (of which he was the first president of the Maryland chapter), the Maryland Goethe Society, and other German historical groups. A victim of a bungled robbery, McClain was killed in 1994 on the porch of his home in the Oakenshaw neighborhood of Baltimore, MD, having returned from a performance of the Washington Ballet.

Extent

3.18 Cubic Feet (2 record center cartons, 1 legal size document box, 1 cardfile box (12.5 x 6.5 x 4.5 inches))

Language of Materials

English

Abstract

William H. McClain was born in Cleveland, OH in 1917 and died in 1994. McClain joined the Department of German at Johns Hopkins University in 1953 and retired in 1982, serving as Professor Emeritus until the end of his life. He served as chairman of the Department of German from 1972 to 1979, president of the local chapter of Phi Beta Kappa, and also chaired during its final years the Humanities Group (1968-70), the last instrument of interdepartmental self-government among the Hopkins humanists. McClain was also active in professional and cultural organizations including MLA, SAMLA, AATG (of which he was the first president of the Maryland chapter), the Maryland Goethe Society, and other German historical groups. The collection includes subject files reflecting McClain's personal and professional interests and postcards collected by and mailed to McClain. The collection spans the 1950s through 1994, with the bulk of materials beginning in the late 1970s.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

No documentation exists about the source of acquisition. However, it is believed that these materials were transferred to Special Collections by McClain's former department or his relatives following his death in 1994.

Accruals

Accession 2002-03.MS.006 unless otherwise noted.

Processing Information

Processed by Jordon Steele, April 2015.

Title
William H. McClain papers, 1950s-1994 (bulk 1970-1994)
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Repository Details

Part of the Special Collections Repository

Contact:
The Sheridan Libraries
Special Collections
3400 N Charles St
Baltimore MD 21218 USA