Remembering John Hope Franklin

John Hope Franklin, professor emeritus of history, died Wednesday at Duke Hospital in Durham, NC. He was 94. James A. Rogerson, AM’69, PhD’80, shares his memories. Add your condolences below in the comments section.

I delivered a personal message to John Hope Franklin in 1967. At the request of my mother-in-law, I told him about the death of their mutual friend, the head reference librarian at the University of North Carolina’s Wilson Library, who helped him with his doctoral dissertation, The Free Negro in North Carolina, 1790-1860. Their friend had made space for Franklin to work in her office and retrieved materials for him when, by law, he wasn’t allowed to use the library’s materials.
After reminiscing, Franklin asked about my studies, and I told him about my research in Czechoslovak history. He asked why I chose this area, and I told him that after the betrayal at Munich in 1938, Czechoslovaks were referred to as “a people of whom we know nothing” by British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain, and I did not want that to happen again. As a Southerner—from North Carolina—I wanted to understand racism in the American South. But I did not think that as a white Southerner, I could be objective. If I could understand racism in East-Central Europe, I decided, I could understand it everywhere.
After this first meeting, Franklin recommended me in 1970 for the University of Chicago doctoral program, and ten years later I completed my doctorate in East-Central European history.
The second time I met Franklin at the Levine Museum of the New South in Charlotte at a 2007 event. He was there to speak about his autobiography Mirror to America (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2005). He signed my book, and I thanked him for his recommendation at the U of C. He was gracious, and we spent time catching up.
Looking back, I am one "redneck" who is grateful and proud that Franklin's reach was broad enough to include me.

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March 31, 2009

I returned to the University of Chicago's graduate program in the Fall Quarter 1976, after having spent five years as a Naval Officer. I began in the fall of 1970 but due to The Vietnam War and my prior military obligation I had to drop out after the spring quarter 1971 to enter the Navy. The U of C. gave me a leave of absence to do this.

On returning I was utterly lost. I had extreme difficulty making the transition from being a Naval Officer to becoming a history grad student. I believed the profession had passed me by and quite frankly I did not know what I was doing. I went to Professor Franklin to moan about my adjustment problems. He was very brief and to the point. He said not to worry. He wasn't worried about me. I then felt that if the top man in my field wasn't worried about me then I had nothing to worry about. His confidence in me and belief in me (when I did not believe in myself) enabled me to earn a 4.0 GPA that very same quarter. Had he not said what he said I would have dropped out of the U. of C. with disastrous consequences to my future

Because of John Hope Franklin's initial boost and his subsequent encouragement I am today a tenured Associate Professor at Virginia Tech. In my career I have always encouraged and believed in my students as Professor Franklin believed in me. It has paid off since I am proud to say that two of my students are now Ivy League Professors with quite a few more on the faculties of Ohio State, Virginia Tech, Mary Baldwin College, Slippery Rock University among others. In that as well as my scholarship I have tried to carry on Professor Franklin's legacy.

Hayward ("Woody") Farrar, AM'71, PhD'83
Associate Professor
History Department
Virginia Tech

Posted by: Hayward ("Woody") Farrar, AM'71, PhD'83 at April 6, 2009 10:02 AM

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