John D. Root papers, 1960-2003

Academic and professional papers of John D. Root in his capacity as a history professor and chair of the Humanities department at Illinois Institute of Technology. Root received his B.A. from the University of Notre Dame in 1962 and his M.A. from Indiana University in 1964. From 1966 to 1968 he served with the U.S. Army in Vietnam, attaining the rank of Captain and receiving two Bronze Stars. Root’s strong interest in modern history was given sharper focus by his wartime experiences.

In 1969 Root became an instructor of history at IIT and steadily gained promotion. In 1974 he became an Assistant Professor of History; in 1980 an Associate Professor; and in 1987 a full Professor. In 1983 he became chairman of the Lewis Department of Humanities, which position he retained until 1998. He specialized in Western civilization and European history, demonstrating a keen grasp not only of events and social developments but also of intellectual movements. His publications included dozens of articles, book reviews, and conference papers. Root was deeply involved in university affairs beyond the Humanities Department. He was an officer of the Faculty Council, a pre-law advisor, and served on numerous university committees. He headed the committee that guided the creation of the Paul V. Galvin Library in 1985.

Root’s papers provide a comprehensive overview of his entire career and demonstrate his care in documenting his various activities and communications, both within the IIT community and without (with fellow scholars, particularly in the field of Catholic Modernism studies, his specialty). The collection also contains his research files on English Catholic Modernism topics, including many photocopies of documents and publications that can be found in original form only in European archives. The collection will serve as an important primary source for research into IIT’s academic and administrative culture in the 1980s and 1990 as well as for English Catholic Modernism.