Ben Ross Schneider, Jr. Papers

Collection

Identifier: LU-MS-114

Staff Only

This collection documents Ben Ross Schneider, Jr.'s tenure as professor of English at Lawrence University from 1956 to 1983, and particularly his creation and maintenance of the London Stage Information Bank. Materials include Schneider's publications, correspondence, grant proposals, newsletters, and photographs.

Dates

1955-2013

Creator

Schneider, Ben Ross, Jr. (Person)

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Lawrence University does not hold the copyright for all materials in this collection. Uses beyond those allowed for fair use under U. S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.) require the researcher to secure permission from the copyright holder.

Extent

1.13 Linear Feet (3 boxes)

21 Megabytes

Additional Description

Biographical or Historical Information

Born in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1920, Ben Ross Schneider, Jr. attended high school in Winchester, Mass., and graduated from Williams College in 1942. During World War II, he served in the Pacific theater with the U.S. Army Signal Corps. After the war, he did post-graduate work on William Wordsworth at Cambridge University in England and Columbia University, where he received his Ph.D. He began his teaching career as an instructor in English literature at the University of Cincinnati and later taught at the University of Colorado at Boulder and Oregon State before joining the Lawrence faculty in 1955. Schneider taught until his retirement in 1983. He was recognized with an honorary Master of Arts degree by Lawrence at the college’s 1983 commencement. A dedicated teacher, researcher and writer, Schneider was also a pioneer in the use of computers for research in the humanities. In the 1970s, he computerized an 11-volume reference work entitled The London Stage, 1660-1800 with the help of 18 student assistants and two programmers. After nine dedicated years, he produced a general index to the 500,000 references to names and titles it contained. Schneider passed away on July 24, 2013. [Adapted from a Lawrence University news article by Rick Peterson, 2013-08-01.]

Method of Acquisition

London Stage floppy disks, documentation, and KEAterm User's Guide transferred to the Archives by Kathy Isaacson, 2013-2016. The source, method, and date of acquisition of other materials are unknown.