David Starr Jordan Collected Papers

David Starr Jordan was a noted educator, scientist and peace activist. Born January 19, 1851, in Gainesville, New York, he was educated at Cornell University, Butler University, and the Indiana University School of Medicine before becoming the President of Indiana University in 1885, the youngest university president in the nation at the time. Six years later, he accepted the post of President of Stanford University in Palo Alto, California, where he remained, first as president and later as chancellor, until his retirement.

Dr. Jordan was a renowned expert in many fields. His training was mainly in ichthyology, the study of fish, and he was widely regarded in that field. In addition, he was known for his work in education and philosophy, publishing many works on those subjects. He was best known, however, for his work as a peace activist. He was a proficient author in this field, writing books such as The Blood of the Nation, War and Waste, Ways of Lasting Peace, and Democracy and World Relations, among many others. He often approached the subject of peace from a biological angle, arguing that war was detrimental to the health of the species because it removed the strongest individuals from the gene pool. He served as president of the World Peace Foundation from 1910 to 1914 and as president of the World Peace Conference in 1915. He was also vice president of the American Peace Society. Although he campaigned vigorously against US involvement in World War I, once war was declared, he advocated aggressive measures to end the conflict quickly. He retired from his post at Stanford in 1916 and from public life in 1925. He died in his home in Palo Alto on September 19, 1931.