Kenneth M. Stampp
Encyclopedia
Kenneth Milton Stampp Alexander F. and May T. Morrison Professor of History Emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley
(1946–1983), was a celebrated historian of slavery
, the American Civil War
, and Reconstruction. He was a visiting professor at Harvard University
, Commonwealth Lecturer at the University of London
, Fulbright Lecturer at the University of Munich, and has held the Harmsworth Chair at Oxford University. In 1989, he received the American Historical Association
Award for Scholarly Distinction. Then in 1993, came the prestigious Lincoln Prize
for lifetime achievement by the Civil War Institute at Gettysburg College
.
, in 1912; his parents were of German Protestant descent. His mother was a Baptist who forbade alcohol and strictly observed the Sabbath; his father, a tough disciplinarian in the old-world German style .
His family suffered through the Great Depression
, "there was never enough money," but Stampp worked a number of small odd jobs as a teen, managing to save enough to afford tuition, first, at Milwaukee State Teachers' College, and then at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. He earned both his B.A. and M.A. there in 1935 and 1936 respectively under the potent influences of Charles A. Beard
(author of An Economic Interpretation of the Constitution of the United States) and William B. Hesseltine (known for coining the phrase about intellectual history: it's "like nailing jelly to the wall"). Hesseltine supervised Stampp's dissertation; Stampp remembered him as a "bastard" during this time, but the two managed to work together successfully through the completion of Stampp's Ph.D. in 1942. He then spent brief stints at the University of Arkansas
and the University of Maryland, College Park
, 1942–46, before joining the faculty at Berkeley. His teaching tenure ran 37 years; in 2006, Stampp celebrated six decades of association there.
He died on July 10, 2009 in Oakland, California
.
: Slavery in the Ante-Bellum South, Stampp countered the arguments of historians such as Ulrich Phillips, who characterized slavery as an essentially benign and paternalistic institution that promoted Southern racial harmony. Stampp asserted, to the contrary, that African-Americans actively resisted slavery, not just through armed uprisings but also through work slowdowns, the breaking of tools, theft from masters, and diverse other means. Through a lengthy scholarly career, Stampp insisted that the moral debate over slavery, and no form of guilt-ridden rationalization, lay at the crux of the Civil War . Later work by other historians qualified certain of the book's claims, but The Peculiar Institution remains a central text in the study of U.S. slavery.
To systematically refute Dunning's interpretation, Stampp amassed a trove of secondary sources. Indeed, he was criticized for not employing more primary material. Furthermore, Stampp's rejoinder was seen by some as a pro-Northern rationalization: though he clearly admitted that the North walked out on reconstruction while it was nowhere near completion, he went on to claim that in light of the passage of the 14th and 15th amendments, Reconstruction was in fact a success; he deemed it "the last great crusade of nineteenth-century romantic reformers." But for an equal number of others, Stampp's appraisal rang as eminently "temperate, judicious and fair-minded."
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
(1946–1983), was a celebrated historian of slavery
Slavery
Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
, the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, and Reconstruction. He was a visiting professor at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, Commonwealth Lecturer at the University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
, Fulbright Lecturer at the University of Munich, and has held the Harmsworth Chair at Oxford University. In 1989, he received the American Historical Association
American Historical Association
The American Historical Association is the oldest and largest society of historians and professors of history in the United States. Founded in 1884, the association promotes historical studies, the teaching of history, and the preservation of and access to historical materials...
Award for Scholarly Distinction. Then in 1993, came the prestigious Lincoln Prize
Lincoln Prize
The Lincoln Prize, endowed by Richard Gilder and Lewis Lehrman and administered by the Civil War Institute at Gettysburg College, has been awarded annually since 1991 for the best non-fiction historical work of the year on the American Civil War. It is named for U.S...
for lifetime achievement by the Civil War Institute at Gettysburg College
Gettysburg College
Gettysburg College is a private four-year liberal arts college founded in 1832, in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, United States, adjacent to the famous battlefield. Its athletic teams are nicknamed the Bullets. Gettysburg College has about 2,700 students, with roughly equal numbers of men and women...
.
Life and career
Stampp was born in Milwaukee, WisconsinMilwaukee, Wisconsin
Milwaukee is the largest city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, the 28th most populous city in the United States and 39th most populous region in the United States. It is the county seat of Milwaukee County and is located on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan. According to 2010 census data, the...
, in 1912; his parents were of German Protestant descent. His mother was a Baptist who forbade alcohol and strictly observed the Sabbath; his father, a tough disciplinarian in the old-world German style .
His family suffered through the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, "there was never enough money," but Stampp worked a number of small odd jobs as a teen, managing to save enough to afford tuition, first, at Milwaukee State Teachers' College, and then at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. He earned both his B.A. and M.A. there in 1935 and 1936 respectively under the potent influences of Charles A. Beard
Charles A. Beard
Charles Austin Beard was, with Frederick Jackson Turner, one of the most influential American historians of the first half of the 20th century. He published hundreds of monographs, textbooks and interpretive studies in both history and political science...
(author of An Economic Interpretation of the Constitution of the United States) and William B. Hesseltine (known for coining the phrase about intellectual history: it's "like nailing jelly to the wall"). Hesseltine supervised Stampp's dissertation; Stampp remembered him as a "bastard" during this time, but the two managed to work together successfully through the completion of Stampp's Ph.D. in 1942. He then spent brief stints at the University of Arkansas
University of Arkansas
The University of Arkansas is a public, co-educational, land-grant, space-grant, research university. It is classified by the Carnegie Foundation as a research university with very high research activity. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and is located in...
and the University of Maryland, College Park
University of Maryland, College Park
The University of Maryland, College Park is a top-ranked public research university located in the city of College Park in Prince George's County, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C...
, 1942–46, before joining the faculty at Berkeley. His teaching tenure ran 37 years; in 2006, Stampp celebrated six decades of association there.
He died on July 10, 2009 in Oakland, California
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
.
The Peculiar Institution
In his first major book, The Peculiar InstitutionThe Peculiar Institution
The Peculiar Institution is a book about slavery published in 1956 by academic Kenneth M. Stampp of the University of California, Berkeley and other universities....
: Slavery in the Ante-Bellum South, Stampp countered the arguments of historians such as Ulrich Phillips, who characterized slavery as an essentially benign and paternalistic institution that promoted Southern racial harmony. Stampp asserted, to the contrary, that African-Americans actively resisted slavery, not just through armed uprisings but also through work slowdowns, the breaking of tools, theft from masters, and diverse other means. Through a lengthy scholarly career, Stampp insisted that the moral debate over slavery, and no form of guilt-ridden rationalization, lay at the crux of the Civil War . Later work by other historians qualified certain of the book's claims, but The Peculiar Institution remains a central text in the study of U.S. slavery.
Dunning Denied
His next study, The Era of Reconstruction, also revised a scholarly stronghold, that of the tragic legend put forth by William A. Dunning (1857–1922) and his school of followers. In this rendering, the South emerges mercilessly beaten, "prostrate in defeat, before a ruthless, vindictive conqueror, who plundered its land and...turned its society upside down... ." The North's greatest sin, so the "legend" goes, consisted of relinquishing control of the Southern governments to "ignorant, half-civilized former slaves."To systematically refute Dunning's interpretation, Stampp amassed a trove of secondary sources. Indeed, he was criticized for not employing more primary material. Furthermore, Stampp's rejoinder was seen by some as a pro-Northern rationalization: though he clearly admitted that the North walked out on reconstruction while it was nowhere near completion, he went on to claim that in light of the passage of the 14th and 15th amendments, Reconstruction was in fact a success; he deemed it "the last great crusade of nineteenth-century romantic reformers." But for an equal number of others, Stampp's appraisal rang as eminently "temperate, judicious and fair-minded."
Major Monographs
- Indiana Politics during the Civil War (1949) [revised dissertation]
- And the War Came: the North and the secession crisis, 1860-1861 (1950)
- The Peculiar Institution: Slavery in the ante-bellum South, Knopf (1956); Vintage (1989) ISBN 0679723072
- The Causes of the Civil War (1959) editor
- Andrew Johnson and the Failure of the Agrarian Dream (1962)
- The Era of Reconstruction, 1865-1877, Knopf (1965); Vintage (1967) ISBN 039470388X
- The Southern Road to Appomattox (1969)
- Reconstruction: an Anthology of Revisionist writings (1969) co-editor
- The Imperiled Union : Essays on the background of the Civil War (1980)
- America in 1857 : A Nation on the Brink (1990)
- The United States and National Self-determination : two traditions (1991)