Herbert Eugene Bolton facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Herbert Eugene Bolton
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Bolton in 1905
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| Born | 20 July 1870 |
| Died | 30 January 1953 (aged 82) |
| Alma mater | University of Wisconsin–Madison, BA University of Pennsylvania, Ph.D. |
| Occupation | Academic, author |
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Notable work
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Guide to Materials for the History of the United States in the Principal Archives of Mexico New Spain and the Anglo-American West |
| Spouse(s) |
Gertrude Janes
(m. 1895) |
| Scientific career | |
| Institutions | Milwaukee State Normal School University of Texas University of California, Berkeley |
| Notable students | Woodrow Borah, LeRoy R. Hafen, Abraham P. Nasatir, J. Fred Rippy, and Ursula Lamb |
| Influences | Frederick Jackson Turner |
Herbert Eugene Bolton (born July 20, 1870 – died January 30, 1953) was an important American historian. He was known for studying the history of the Spanish-American borderlands, which are the areas where Spanish and American cultures met.
Bolton created an idea called the Bolton Theory. This theory says you can't truly understand the history of the United States by itself. You need to look at how it connects with the histories of other countries in the Americas. He wrote or helped write 94 books and articles.
He was a student of Frederick Jackson Turner, another famous historian. But Bolton disagreed with Turner's ideas about the American frontier. Bolton believed it was better to look at the history of all the Americas together. He thought this would help us understand how different cultures and colonies shaped the modern United States.
Most of Bolton's career was spent at the University of California, Berkeley. He led the history department for 22 years. He also helped make the famous Bancroft Library a top research center.
Contents
Early Life and School
Herbert Eugene Bolton was born in 1870 on a farm in Monroe County, Wisconsin. His parents were Edwin Latham and Rosaline (Cady) Bolton.
He went to the University of Wisconsin–Madison. He earned his first degree, a bachelor's degree, in 1895. In the same year, he married Gertrude Janes. They had seven children together.
From 1896 to 1897, Bolton studied with Frederick Jackson Turner. Then, in 1897, he went to the University of Pennsylvania. There, he studied American history with John Bach McMaster. Bolton earned his Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania in 1899. After that, he taught at Milwaukee State Normal School until 1900.
His Career as a Historian
From 1901 to 1909, Bolton was a history professor at the University of Texas. He taught about medieval and European history. During this time, he became very interested in the Spanish colonization of the Americas. In the summer of 1902, he started traveling to Mexico. He was looking for old historical documents there.
The Carnegie Institution asked Bolton to write a report. This report was about information on United States history found in Mexican archives. It was published in 1913. Soon after, Bolton became an editor for a historical journal.
In 1904, Bolton and Eugene C. Barker wrote a textbook together. It was called With the Makers of Texas: A Source Reader in Texas History. In 1906, Bolton began studying Native Americans in Texas. He did this for the Bureau of American Ethnology. He wrote over 100 articles for their Handbook of American Indians North of Mexico.
Working at Berkeley
In 1911, Bolton became a professor at the University of California, Berkeley. He led the history department for 22 years. He also became the first director of the famous Bancroft Library. Historian George P. Hammond said that the next 20 years were like the "Bolton era" for history studies at Berkeley.
As a leader and director, Bolton made the Bancroft Library a top place for American history research. He also made his department one of the best in the world. Bolton helped start The Hispanic American Historical Review in 1918. This was the first journal just for Latin American history.
He taught a popular course called "History of the Americas." Sometimes, a thousand students would take this class! His special seminar for advanced students became very well known. The historians who trained with him are called the “Bolton School.” At Berkeley, he guided over 300 Masters theses and 104 doctoral dissertations. This is a record!
In 1914, Bolton published Athanase de Mézières and the Louisiana-Texas Frontier, 1768–1780. A year later, he published Texas in the Middle Eighteenth Century: Studies in Spanish Colonial History and Administration. He was even offered the job of president at the University of Texas, but he turned it down.
Over the next 29 years, Bolton published many more works. These included Texas in the Middle Eighteenth Century (1921), The Spanish Borderlands (1921), Outpost of Empire (1931), Rim of Christendom (1936), and Coronado (1949). For Coronado, he won a Bancroft Prize from Columbia University.
Awards and Recognition
Bolton became famous around the world and received many honors. The University of California gave him a special professorship. Ten colleges and universities in the United States and Canada gave him their highest honorary degrees. Universities in Latin America made him an honorary member of their teaching staff.
In 1925, the King of Spain made him a Commander of the Royal Order of Isabella the Catholic. The government of Italy honored him for his historical work on Father Eusebio Kino. Even though Bolton was not Catholic, Pope Pius XII made him a Knight of St. Sylvester in 1949. This was to recognize his work on the history of the Catholic Church in New Spain.
In 1932, Bolton was the president of the American Historical Association. In his speech, "The Epic of Greater America," he shared his idea of looking at the history of the whole continent. This idea later became known as the "Bolton Theory."
Drake's Plate
In 1937, Bolton looked at a metal plate that was supposedly found. It was called Drake's Plate of Brass. He said it was real proof that Sir Francis Drake landed on the California coast in 1579. However, later tests in 1977 showed that the plate was a fake.
Some people wondered if Bolton knew it was fake. But his biographer, Albert Hurtado, thought it was more likely that Bolton made a mistake. It's possible that the fake plate was a prank by some of his colleagues. The joke went wrong when Bolton publicly said it was real.
Some of his most famous students include Woodrow Borah, John W. Caughey, LeRoy R. Hafen, Abraham P. Nasatir, J. Fred Rippy, and Ursula Lamb.
Bolton retired as a professor at Berkeley in 1944. He taught for a short time at San Francisco State College after retiring. He passed away from a stroke in Berkeley, California, in 1953.
Honors and Legacy
- President, American Historical Association 1932
- Member, American Philosophical Society 1937
- Bolton Hall at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee is named after him. Bolton taught there when it was the Milwaukee State Normal School.
- The Conference on Latin American History gives out an award called the Herbert Eugene Bolton Prize. This prize is for the best book in English about Latin American history.
Bolton is best known for his research on Spanish colonial history. This includes his work on the Spanish-American borderlands. He also had a big idea about studying the history of the Americas as one connected story.
Historian Kathleen Egan Chamberlain said that Bolton's writings still challenge old ways of thinking about history. They ask important questions about how Spanish institutions and Native American relations were shaped. His idea of a "hemispheric history" (looking at all of North and South America together) is still important today. Bolton taught until he was 82 and inspired many students. These students have continued to study and expand on his ideas.
A collection of essays about Latin American history has a whole section about Bolton's work. It's called "Bolton, Boltonism, and Neo-Boltonism." This shows how much his ideas influenced others. His 94 written works are still important today. The Bolton Prize honors the best work in English on Latin American history.
In 1970, John Francis Bannon wrote The Spanish Borderland Frontier, 1513–1821. This book brought together new ideas about the Spanish Borderlands. It built on Bolton's work and 50 years of research by other scholars.
List of Works (Partial)
- Guide to Materials for the History of the United States in the Principal Archives of Mexico (1913)
- Athanase de Mézières and the Louisiana-Texas Frontier, 1768–1780 (1914)
- Texas in the Middle Eighteenth Century: Studies in Spanish Colonial History and Administration (1915)
- The Spanish Borderlands: A Chronicle of Old Florida and the Southwest (1921)
- Outpost of Empire (1931)
- Rim of Christendom (1936)
- Coronado, Knight of Pueblos and Plains (1949)
See also
In Spanish: Herbert Eugene Bolton para niños
