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William I. Hull Papers

 Collection
Identifier: SFHL-RG5-069

Scope and Contents

The Papers contain correspondence (1900-1939), diaries (1892-1939), published and unpublished writings, papers relating to conferences and committees in which he participated, reference materials, and study and teaching notes. Of particular interest are his notes on the history of Quakerism in Holland, including files on persons and places as well as a translation of the minutes of Friesland Monthly Meeting of Friends (1677-1701), and a two-volume manuscript of his unpublished history of Swarthmore College.

His correspondence primarily concerns his peace activities, particularly his efforts toward limitation of armaments and an advocacy of international arbitration. Correspondents include Jane Addams, Devere Allen, Fannie Fern Andrews, Jacob Billikopf, Percy H. Boynton, Thomas S. Butler, Merle Curti, Paul H. Douglas, Anna Griscom Elkinton, Edward W. Evans, Abraham Flexner, Edwin Ginn, Sidney L. Gulick, Henry S. Haskell, J. Franklin Jameson, George W. Kirchwey, Henry Goddard Leach, Frederick J. MacFarland, George W. Nasmyth, Norman Penny, Elihu Root, L.S. Rowe, Joseph Swain, Benjamin Franklin Trueblood, Oswald Garrison Villard, Thomas Raeburn White, Janet P. Whitney, Richard R. Wood, and Stanley R. Yarnell. Organizations in which he was active with which he communicated include the American Peace Society, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, the Church Peace Union, Fellowship of Reconciliation, the Women's Peace Party, and the World Peace Foundation

1. Correspondence, 1900-1939
2. Biographical and family papers
3. Writings: Quakerism in Holland
4. Writings: A History of Swarthmore College
5. Writings: Other books
6. Writings: Pamphlets, book reviews, articles
7. Writings: Unpublished
8. Addresses
9. Conferences and Committees
10. Reference material
11. Annotated books from the library of William I. Hull
12. Study and Teaching Notes
13. Miscellaneous

Dates

  • Creation: 1843-1939 (bulk 1900-1939)

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Friends Historical Library believes all of the items in this collection to be in the Public Domain in the United States, and is not aware of any restrictions on their use. However, the user is responsible for making a final determination of copyright status before reproducing. See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-US/1.0/.

Biographical / Historical

William Isaac Hull (1868-1939), a Quaker and pacifist, taught history at Swarthmore College for 47 years, from 1892 to 1939.

Born in Baltimore, Hull attended the Friends Elementary and Secondary School in Baltimore prior to his studies at Johns Hopkins University where he earned a A.B. in 1889 and a Ph.D. in 1892. He also studied history abroad at the University of Berlin in 1891 and at the University of Leyden in 1907. Hull was the youngest faculty member at Swarthmore College when he was appointed Associate Professor of History and Economics in 1892. He served as Joseph Wharton Professor of History and Political Science, 1894-1904, Professor of History, 1904-1911, Isaac H. Clothier Professor of History and International Relations, 1911-1929, Howard M. Jenkins Research Professor of Quaker History, 1929-1939, and Librarian, Friends Historical Library, 1936-1939. In 1914 Hull went to the Netherlands Archives as Research Professor for the Carnegie Institution .

In 1898 Hull married Hannah Hallowell Clothier, member of the Class of 1891 of Swarthmore College. Both William and Hannah Hull were dedicated to the cause of world peace. William Hull was a pacifist, committed to world organization, disarmament, and international arbitration. He attended the Second International Conference at the Hague in 1907 and in 1908 published a history of the two Hague conferences (The Two Hague Conference and Their Contributions to International Law Boston, Ginn and Company, 1908), which was widely used as a text and a reference book. He was United States Delegate to the International Conference on Education at the Hague, 1914 and 1915; an official observer in Paris during the writing of the Covenant of the League of Nations; attended the Washington Naval Conference in 1922 and the General Disarmament Conference at Geneva in 1932. In 1914 Andrew Carnegie appointed Hull to be the Quaker representative on the board of the Church Peace Union, where he served as a trustee for many years. Hull was also a Director of the World Peace Foundation, Secretary of the Pennsylvania Arbitration and Peace Society, and was a frequent lecturer for the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. He was active in or frequently communicated with most of the leading peace organizations of the period. Hull communicated extensively on peace subjects with officials in the United States government and with members of Congress. In 1928 his testimony opposing expansion of the Navy at a Congressional hearing aroused great public controversy, especially from the Daughters of the American Revolution and from various veterans organizations. His wife, Hannah Clothier Hull (1872-1958), shared in many of his peace activities. She was particularly active in the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, and her papers are preserved in the Swarthmore College Peace Collection.

Hull published numerous books and pamphlets on peace and international relations. Also, beginning in 1929, when he was appointed Howard M. Jenkins Research Professor of Quaker History, Hull wrote extensively on Quaker history, especially on Dutch Quakers and on William Penn. He planned a series of twelve monographs on Dutch Quakers, five of which were published by Swarthmore College. The others were not completed before his death, but his papers have extensive notes or drafts for most of them. Also included in his papers is an uncompleted history of Swarthmore College, other manuscripts, speeches, pictures, material from conferences he attended, study and teaching notes, and reference material.

Extent

26 linear ft. (55 boxes)

Language of Materials

English

Abstract

William I. Hull, a Quaker pacifist, taught history at Swarthmore College from 1892 until his death in 1939. He was the Librarian of Friends Historical Library and also authored numerous books and articles, particularly on the subjects of Quakers in Holland, William Penn, peace, and international relations. The Papers contain correspondence (1900-1939), diaries (1892-1939), published and unpublished writings, papers relating to conferences and committees in which he participated, reference materials, and study and teaching notes. Of particular interest are his notes on the history of Quakerism in Holland, including files on persons and places as well as a translation of the minutes of Friesland Monthly Meeting of Friends (1677-1701), and a two-volume manuscript of his unpublished history of Swarthmore College. His correspondence primarily concerns his peace activities, particularly his efforts toward limitation of armaments and an advocacy of international arbitration.

Physical Location

For current information on the location of materials, please consult the Library's online catalog.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Donor: William I. Hull & Hannah C. Hull

Related Materials

The collection includes papers collected from various sources including the Swarthmore College Peace Collection, Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College, and the family of Dr. Hull. The papers of his wife, Hannah Clothier Hull, have been deposited in the Swarthmore College Peace Collection.

Separated Materials

Typed copy of A History of Swarthmore College bound and stored in Staff Workroom, along with card indexes. Books in Hull's personal collection which were not annotated were added to FHL book collections.

Processing Information

Until 1952, these papers were scattered in three places: Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College, Swarthmore College Peace Collection, and in the home of Hannah Clothier Hull. In the summer of 1952, the entire collection was sorted and filed in Record Group 5 at Friends Historical Library. In 1990, part of the collection were rehoused and a new temporary finding aid produced with a Collection Summary and description of the correspondents. In 2004, the entire collection was rehoused and a new finding aid created.

Title
An Inventory of the William Isaac Hull Papers, 1843-1939
Author
FHL staff
Date
2006
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
English

Revision Statements

  • 2016: This electronic finding aid was updated in Summer 2016 by Abdulrezak Kemal in preparation for importing into ArchivesSpace, to conform to current markup standards and the ArchivesSpace data model.

Find It at the Library

Most of the materials in this catalog are not digitized and can only be accessed in person. Please see our website for more information about visiting or requesting repoductions from Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College Library

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