Frank Luther Mott facts for kids

Frank Luther Mott (born April 4, 1886 – died October 23, 1964) was an American teacher, historian, and journalist. He won the 1939 Pulitzer Prize for History for parts of his important book series, A History of American Magazines.

Early Life and School

Frank Luther Mott was born in Rose Hill, Iowa. His parents, Mary E. and David Charles Mott, published a weekly newspaper called the What Cheer, Iowa Patriot. Their family even owned a print shop in Keokuk County. Frank was a Quaker, which is a type of Christian faith.

When he was 10 years old, his father started publishing another newspaper, the Audubon, Iowa Republican. Young Frank helped out by setting the type for the newspaper.

He started his college studies at Simpson College. Then, he finished his first degree at the University of Chicago. Later, Mott went to Columbia University in 1917 and earned his master's degree in 1919. He got his Ph.D. (a very high degree) in 1928 from the University of Iowa while he was teaching there. He married Vera Ingram, and their daughter, Mildred Mott Wedel, became a famous archaeologist.

Teaching and Journalism Career

Mott became a professor of English at the University of Iowa in 1921. By 1925, he was teaching journalism and became the director of the journalism school. He stayed at the University of Iowa until 1942. Then, he became the Dean of the School of Journalism at the University of Missouri (MU).

Frank Luther Mott might have been the first person to use the word photojournalism in 1924. Photojournalism is about telling stories with pictures in newspapers and magazines. He was very important in teaching others about photojournalism. The first photojournalism class was taught at the University of Iowa when he was there. Also, the first full photojournalism program started at the University of Missouri in 1943 because he asked for it.

His textbook, American Journalism: A History of Newspapers in the United States through 250 years 1690 to 1940, was a very important book. It was used in many classes about the history of journalism. The New York Times newspaper said it was "one of the most valuable and informative resources" about daily newspapers. Mott also helped General MacArthur's staff in Japan with advice on magazines and newspapers.

Mott had a unique way of teaching his students. Sometimes, in the middle of a lecture, he would pretend someone was trying to murder him! Then, he would challenge his students to write about what they had just seen happen.

Mott loved magazines his whole life. His father used to collect many of them at home. His huge book series, A History of American Magazines, began as part of his Ph.D. work in the late 1920s. He planned for it to be six books. However, other projects, like his book American Journalism, slowed him down. Four books of American Magazines covered history up to 1905. Mott passed away after he started working on the fifth book.

Volumes II and III of A History of American Magazines (published in 1938) won the 1939 Pulitzer Prize for History. Volume 4 won the Bancroft Prize in 1958.

Mott was the president of Kappa Tau Alpha, a journalism honor society, from 1937 to 1939. He died in Columbia, Missouri on October 23, 1964.

Books About Benjamin Franklin

In 1936, Mott worked with Chester E. Jorgenson to publish a book called Benjamin Franklin: Representative Selections, With Introduction, Bibliography, and Notes. This book was for the American Book Company.

On April 1, 1937, a famous writer named Carl Van Doren wrote to Mr. Mott. Van Doren told Mott how much he admired the Franklin book. He said it was a great collection of writings and also showed deep knowledge. Van Doren was writing a big book about Benjamin Franklin himself. He said Mott's book was his "constant handbook" and that he wrote notes in its margins. Van Doren's book, Benjamin Franklin, was published in 1938 and also won the Pulitzer Prize in 1939.

Other Books

In 1962, Mott published Time Enough, which was a collection of essays about his own life.

Works

• Interpretations of Journalism: A Book of Readings Edited with Ralph D. Casey, 1937.
• A History of American Magazines, 1741-1850; A History of American Magazines, 1850-1865(1938)
• "Trends in newspaper content." The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science (1942): 60–65. in JSTOR
• "Facetious News Writing, 1833-1883." Mississippi Valley Historical Review (1942): 35–54. in JSTOR
• Jefferson and the Press (Louisiana State University Press, 1943)
• "The Newspaper Coverage of Lexington and Concord." New England Quarterly (1944): 489–505. in JSTOR
• "Newspapers in presidential campaigns." Public Opinion Quarterly 8.3 (1944): 348–367. Online
• Golden Multitudes: The Story of Best Sellers in the United States, 1947.
• The News in America Harvard Univ Press, 1952.
• A History of American Magazines: 1850-1865 Vol. II. Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1957.
• A History of American Magazines: 1865-1885 Vol. III. Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1957.
• A History of American Magazines: 1885-1905 Vol. IV. Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1957.
• The Old Printing Office with John DePol, 1962.
• American Journalism, a History, 1690-1960, 1962.
• Time Enough: Essays in Autobiography, (Greenwood Press) 1962.
• Five Stories, (Prairie Press) 1962.
• Missouri Reader, (University of Missouri Press) 1964.

Notable Students

• Marjorie Paxson