Question of the Month: December 2022

In December, we asked our alumni: Who was the most memorable history professor you worked with at Rochester? Share a story about them! Read on to see what they said.

History Faculty in 1979, from Interpres: Class of 1980, page 18. From left to right: Christopher Lasch, Eugene Genovese, John Waters, Jesse Moore, Stanley Engerman, Milton Berman, Mary Young, Jules Benjamin.

Timothy Schum (BA '60): "There were two actually, Drs. Arthur May and Richard Wade. May's entrance to the classroom was classic. Carefully arranging his coat and hat after ascending the small, elevated stage, he would take his notes, retrieve his pocket watch and place it on the table as Rush Rhees' bells struck the hour. Promptly his lecture would commence. Pity the poor undergraduate who was late. The lecture would be interrupted by a May glare followed by "At least you have the correct day Mr. So and So!"

What made Dr. May a memorable teacher was undergraduates knew he loved history and the University itself. As a sophomore I received a nice grade on a research paper I compiled on the Krupp Steel Works and on the paper was a note to make an appointment to see him. There he spent some time encouraging me to major in history. To make it my life's work. Wow! While I devoted my career to sports coaching, in retirement I have found that interest in history kindled so long ago by Dr. May did emerge albeit at a relative amateur level of competence.

Dr. Wade's legacy was that his study of the American city came with a message to his undergraduates: politics in not a dirty word nor an unworthy profession. He encouraged undergraduates to involve themselves in the political process. I that the Wade imprint alone made exposure to his courses memorable. While I am certain as an undergraduate student I left no impression on the professors cited, they certainly were memorable mentors to me."

Martha Steen Whitney (BA '61): "Hayden V. White."

Sue Spector (BA '62): "Dr. May’s EUROPE SINCE (1865; 1914) were fabulous classes. Dr. May was animated and such fun to watch and listen. His statement, “the end of May” still makes me smile. Dr. Richard Wade taught such an interesting take on American History…THE CITY."

Clifford S. Fishman (BA '66): "It's difficult to choose: Hayden While, A.W. Salamone, and Bernie Weisberger, each brilliant in his own way. I think I'd have to go with Bernie, first, because he encouraged students to call him that out of class, second, because he let me do a research paper about historical fiction set during the Civil War, and third, because he played Puck (brilliantly!) in a student production of The Tempest."

Melinda (Birnbaum) Lyons (BA '79): "Brenda Meehan. My favorite experience was her hosting of her Russian revolution class in her home, complete with samovar tea. The fall I attended her class, we watched the Iranian communists compete with the Islamists for supremacy in Iran."

Elise Glenn (BA '81): "Peter Linebaugh. Linebaugh taught people’s history around and through the curriculum. One semester he created the Social Utopians’ Society and another taught a class on the Victorian novelists that was nothing short of subversive feminism. Linebaugh challenged our thinking. I have enjoyed a legal career but later in life taught criminal justice at a college and a university. At the latter, I serve as an administrator doing civil rights work and serve on the President’s cabinet to promote the success of students from marginalized communities. It's all possible because of what Linebaugh gave us."

Ray Fantone (BA '83): "Professor Knox. His knowledge of European and German history was excellent. I read and own many of his books on Italy in WW II."

Kate Slocum (BA '01): "Professor Stewart Weaver, no doubt. While the department was full of knowledgeable and colorful characters, Prof Weaver stands out for me these 21 years later. His lectures on British and Irish history were whirlwinds of relevant facts and entertainment of the kind that makes for lifelong learning. I never stopped reading about the UK, Ireland, WWI, and British India. I'm still using those skills to, for example, help Mt. Hope Cemetery restore and educate the community about war graves there. Thank you Professor Weaver!"