Joseph J. Spengler
Encyclopedia
Joseph John Spengler was an American economist, statistician, and historian of economic thought. A recipient of the 1951 John Frederick Lewis Award of the American Philosophical Society
and the 1981 Distinguished Fellow Award from the History of Economics Society, he was Professor Emeritus of Economics at Duke University
at the time of his death.
. He initially studied journalism at college, but dropped out after his first year to become a crime reporter. A year later he returned to higher education, at first studying sociology and political science, but eventually gravitating to economics. He received his B.A., M.A., and PhD from Ohio State University
, where his 1930 doctoral dissertation was a comparative study on the fertitlity rates of native-born and immigrant women in the United States. After a stint teaching at the University of Arizona
he joined the faculty of Duke University
in 1932, initially as a visiting professor, and became a permanent member of the faculty in 1934. He was to remain there until his retirement as the James B. Duke Professor
of Economics in 1972. With Earl J. Hamilton
, Spengler established the university's first graduate level program in Economic History as well as the History of Political Economy (HOPE) research group.
During World War II, he worked for the Office of Price Administration
as the price executive for the Southeastern region
of the United States and over the years held several other advisory posts to the US government and the United Nations. His interest in population studies and the demographic aspects of economics reflected in his doctoral dissertation, became a major focus of his research and writing thoroughout his career. His first book, France Faces Depopulation, published in 1938, examined the cultural and political causes of France's pre-World War II population decline, and one of his last major books was The Economics of Individual and Population Aging, published in 1980. In 1972, Duke University Press published a collection of his classic essays in the area: Population Economics: Selected Essays of Joseph J. Spengler.
Joseph Spengler died in Durham, North Carolina
from Alzheimer's disease
at the age of 88. He was survived by his wife, the former Dorothy Marie Kress. The couple married in 1927 and were co-authors of "Maintenance of Postwar Full Employment" (1944). Spengler's 1978 book, Facing Zero Population Growth: Reactions and Interpretations, Past and Present has the dedication:
In 2004, the History of Economics Society established the annual Joseph J. Spengler Prize for the best book published on the history of economics.
Further reading
American Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Society, founded in 1743, and located in Philadelphia, Pa., is an eminent scholarly organization of international reputation, that promotes useful knowledge in the sciences and humanities through excellence in scholarly research, professional meetings, publications,...
and the 1981 Distinguished Fellow Award from the History of Economics Society, he was Professor Emeritus of Economics at Duke University
Duke University
Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...
at the time of his death.
Biography
Spengler was born in Piqua, OhioPiqua, Ohio
Piqua is a city in Miami County, Ohio, United States. The population was 20,738 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area.Piqua was one of the cities that experienced severe flooding during the Great Dayton Flood of 1913....
. He initially studied journalism at college, but dropped out after his first year to become a crime reporter. A year later he returned to higher education, at first studying sociology and political science, but eventually gravitating to economics. He received his B.A., M.A., and PhD from Ohio State University
Ohio State University
The Ohio State University, commonly referred to as Ohio State, is a public research university located in Columbus, Ohio. It was originally founded in 1870 as a land-grant university and is currently the third largest university campus in the United States...
, where his 1930 doctoral dissertation was a comparative study on the fertitlity rates of native-born and immigrant women in the United States. After a stint teaching at the University of Arizona
University of Arizona
The University of Arizona is a land-grant and space-grant public institution of higher education and research located in Tucson, Arizona, United States. The University of Arizona was the first university in the state of Arizona, founded in 1885...
he joined the faculty of Duke University
Duke University
Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...
in 1932, initially as a visiting professor, and became a permanent member of the faculty in 1934. He was to remain there until his retirement as the James B. Duke Professor
James B. Duke Professor
At Duke University, the title of James B. Duke Professor is given to a small number of the faculty with extraordinary records of achievement. At some universities, titles like "Distinguished Professor," "Institute Professor," or "Regents Professor" are counterparts of this title.- Some current...
of Economics in 1972. With Earl J. Hamilton
Earl J. Hamilton
Earl J. Hamilton was an American historian, one of the founders of economic history, and a prominent hispanist.He was married to Gladys Dallas Hamilton, and had one daughter, Sita Hamilton...
, Spengler established the university's first graduate level program in Economic History as well as the History of Political Economy (HOPE) research group.
During World War II, he worked for the Office of Price Administration
Office of Price Administration
The Office of Price Administration was established within the Office for Emergency Management of the United States government by Executive Order 8875 on August 28, 1941. The functions of the OPA was originally to control money and rents after the outbreak of World War II.President Franklin D...
as the price executive for the Southeastern region
Southeastern United States
The Southeastern United States, colloquially referred to as the Southeast, is the eastern portion of the Southern United States. It is one of the most populous regions in the United States of America....
of the United States and over the years held several other advisory posts to the US government and the United Nations. His interest in population studies and the demographic aspects of economics reflected in his doctoral dissertation, became a major focus of his research and writing thoroughout his career. His first book, France Faces Depopulation, published in 1938, examined the cultural and political causes of France's pre-World War II population decline, and one of his last major books was The Economics of Individual and Population Aging, published in 1980. In 1972, Duke University Press published a collection of his classic essays in the area: Population Economics: Selected Essays of Joseph J. Spengler.
Joseph Spengler died in Durham, North Carolina
Durham, North Carolina
Durham is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the county seat of Durham County and also extends into Wake County. It is the fifth-largest city in the state, and the 85th-largest in the United States by population, with 228,330 residents as of the 2010 United States census...
from Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease also known in medical literature as Alzheimer disease is the most common form of dementia. There is no cure for the disease, which worsens as it progresses, and eventually leads to death...
at the age of 88. He was survived by his wife, the former Dorothy Marie Kress. The couple married in 1927 and were co-authors of "Maintenance of Postwar Full Employment" (1944). Spengler's 1978 book, Facing Zero Population Growth: Reactions and Interpretations, Past and Present has the dedication:
To Dorothy Kress Spengler, my wife, companion, and co-worker for fifty years
In 2004, the History of Economics Society established the annual Joseph J. Spengler Prize for the best book published on the history of economics.
Selected publications of Joseph J. Spengler
- 1938. France Faces Depopulation. Duke Univ. Press. First-page chapter-preview links (from Questia.com).
- 1950. "Vertical Integration and Antitrust Policy," Journal of Political Economy, 58(4), pp. 347-352 (from JSTORJSTORJSTOR is an online system for archiving academic journals, founded in 1995. It provides its member institutions full-text searches of digitized back issues of several hundred well-known journals, dating back to 1665 in the case of the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society...
). - 1951. "The Population Obstacle to Economic Betterment," American Economic Review, 41(2), pp. 343-354.
- 1964. "Economic Thought of Islam: Ibn Khaldun," Comparative Studies in Society and History, 6(3), pp. 268-306.
- 1966. "Values and Fertility Analysis," Demography, 3(1), pp. 109-130.
- 1966. "The Economist and the Population Question," American Economic Review, 56(1/2), pp. 1-24
- 1972. Population Economics: Selected Essays of Joseph J. Spengler, Robert S. Smith et al., ed. Duke Univ. Press. Review extract.
- 1980. Origins of Economic Thought and Justice, Southern Illinois University Press. 1st-page chapter links (from Questia.com).
- 1980. The Economics of Individual and Population Aging. With Robert L. Clark. Description & chapter-preview links on Google Books.
Sources
- Cook, Joan, "Joseph Spengler, 88, Economics Professor At Duke University", New York Times, 3 January 1991.
- Cook, Robert Cecil (ed.), "Spengler, Joseph John", Who's Who in American Education: A Biographical Dictionary of Eminent Living Educators of the United States, Volume 8, 1938
- Durden, Robert Franklin, The Launching of Duke University, 1924-1949, Duke University Press, 1993. ISBN 0822313022
- Kelley, Allen C., "Joseph J. Spengler (November 19, 1902-January 2, 1991)", Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society, Vol. 136, No. 1, (March 1992), pp. 142-147
- Silk, Leonard, "The Rich Legacy of an Economist", New York Times, 4 January 1991
- Spengler, Dorothy K. and Spengler, Joseph J, "Maintenance of Postwar Full Employment" in The Winning Plans in the Pabst Postwar Employment Awards, Pabst Brewing CompanyPabst Brewing CompanyPabst Brewing Company is an American company that dates its origins to a brewing company founded in 1844 by Jacob Best and by 1889 named after Frederick Pabst. It is currently the holding company contracting for the brewing of over two dozen brands of beer and malt liquor from defunct companies...
, 1944, pp. 79-83 - Spengler, Joseph J. Facing Zero Population Growth: Reactions and Interpretations, Past and Present, Duke University Press, 1978.
Further reading
- Blaug, MarkMark BlaugMark Blaug , was a British economist , who has covered a broad range of topics over his long career. In 1955 he received his PhD from Columbia University in New York under the supervision of George Stigler...
(ed.), "Spengler, Joseph L.", Who's Who in Economics (3d edition), E. Elgar, 1999. ISBN 1858988861 - Silk, Leonard, "The Economics of Joseph J. Spengler", Demography India, 14 (1), 1986, pp. 137-145
- Sobel, Irvin, "Joseph J. Spengler: The Institutionalist Approach to the History of Economics" in Research in the History of Economic Thought and Methodology, Vol.1, 1983, pp. 243-270.
External links
- Transcript from Spengler's Retirement Dinner, Duke University, January 14, 1972
- CV: Joseph J. Spengler, Duke University Archives.
- Joseph J. Spengler, Duke University
- Joseph John Spengler Papers, [ca. 1896
-1987,] David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University.