The University of Chicago Library > The Hanna Holborn Gray Special Collections Research Center > Finding Aids > Guide to the James Laurence Laughlin Papers 1885-1914
© 2006 University of Chicago Library
| Title: | Laughlin, James Laurence. Papers |
|---|---|
| Dates: | 1885-1914 |
| Size: | .5 linear ft. ( 1 box) |
| Repository: |
Hanna Holborn Gray Special Collections Research Center |
| Abstract: | J. Laurence Laughlin (1850-933), Professor of Political Economy, editor of the Journal of Political Economy. The J. Laurence Laughlin Papers consist of a small collection of writings, correspondence, lectures notes and miscellany. The primary focus of the collection centers on two economic controversies in which Laughlin was involved concerning U. S. silver monetary policy and the legality and benefits of labor unions. |
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When quoting material from this collection, the preferred citation is: Laughlin, James Laurence. Papers, [Box #, Folder #], Hanna Holborn Gray Special Collections Research Center, University of Chicago Library
James Laurence Laughlin was born on April 2, 1850 in Deerfield, Ohio. In the fall of 1869 he entered Harvard College and was graduated summa cum laude in history in 1873. He continued the study of history under Henry Adams at Harvard. He also taught at Hopkinson's Classical School in Boston. In 1876 he received his Ph. D. degree for his thesis on "The Anglo-Saxon Legal Procedure."
In the fall of 1878 Laughlin was appointed instructor of political economy at Harvard. After receiving graduate training in economics, he was appointed an assistant professor at Harvard (1883-1888); during this period, Laughlin organized and sponsored the Political Economy Club. He also completed his History of Bimetallism in the United States in 1885. In 1888 Laughlin left Harvard and became president of the Manufacturer's Mutual Life Insurance Company of Philadelphia. He accepted a professorship in Political Economy at Cornell University in 1890.
Two years later President Harper appointed Laughlin Head Professor of Political Economy at the new University of Chicago. At Chicago, Laughlin introduced the seminar as a method of instruction and founded the Journal of Political Economy. In 1894, Laughlin proposed that the University establish a School of Commerce and Industry. The new professional school, which began undergraduate instruction in 1898, evolved into the Graduate School of Business.
In 1916 Laughlin became Professor Emeritus. He moved to East Jaffery, New Hampshire, where he completed his Credit of Nations, published in 1918. He also wrote numerous magazine articles, largely on labor questions, including "Monopoly of Labor." He died on November 28, 1933.
The J. Laurence Laughlin Papers consist of a small collection of writings, correspondence, lectures notes and miscellany. The primary focus of the collection centers on two economic controversies in which Laughlin was involved concerning U. S. silver monetary policy and the legality and benefits of labor unions.
| Box 1 Folder 1 | Correspondence 1885-1898
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| Box 1 Folder 2 | Correspondence 1903-1914
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| Box 1 Folder 3 | Manuscript, "Monopoly of Labor"-holograph draft |
| Box 1 Folder 4 | Manuscript, "Monopoly of Labor"-holograph draft and typescript draft |
| Box 1 Folder 5 | Manuscript, "Monopoly of Labor"-holograph draft and outline |
| Box 1 Folder 6 | Manuscript, Credit of the Nations [1918]-Preface |
| Box 1 Folder 7 | Manuscript, Credit of the Nations [1918]-Chapter I |
| Box 1 Folder 8 | Manuscript, Credit of the Nations [1918]-Chapter II |
| Box 1 Folder 9 | Manuscript, Credit of the Nations [1918]-Chapter III |
| Box 1 Folder 10 | Manuscript, Credit of the Nations [1918]-Chapter IV |
| Box 1 Folder 11 | Manuscript, Credit of the Nations [1918]-Chapter V |
| Box 1 Folder 12 | Manuscript, Credit of the Nations [1918]-Chapter VI |
| Box 1 Folder 13 | Manuscript, Credit of the Nations [1918]-Appendix I |
| Box 1 Folder 14 | Manuscript, Credit of the Nations [1918]-Miscellaneous drafts |
| Box 1 Folder 15 | Lecture notes from Samuel Eliot's course Nineteenth Century taken by J. Laurence Laughlin |
| Box 1 Folder 16 | Instructors grade book: "Railways, 1891-1892" |
| Box 1 Folder 17 | Miscellaneous writings |