Introduction

The James B. Macelwane Manuscript Collection (DOC MSS 1) is actually one of four collections held by the Saint Louis University Archives related to the life and work of the Reverend James Bernard Macelwane, S. J.  The manuscript collection described in this register primarily contains material which Father Macelwane himself had been saving in his room in the Jesuit residence at Saint Louis University.  Upon Father Macelwane's death in 1956, his friend and colleague, Father Victor Blum, S. J., preserved this collection of Macelwane material, added numerous items to it, and put the material into a logical order.  When Father John Francis Bannon, S. J., undertook the task of organizing an Historical Archives for the University in 1978, this Macelwane material found its way to his care.  Although Father Bannon worked diligently in the Archives, he was unable to do anything with the Macelwane material before he died in 1986.  Then, in 1988, a new University Archivist, Dr. Constance Smith, brought the Macelwane collection from the Jesuit residence to the University Archives in Pius Library.

As the processing of this manuscript collection was nearing completion, another cache of Macelwane material was discovered stored in the basement of Macelwane Hall under the control of the Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences.  The decision was made to finish processing the present group of Macelwane manuscripts, and process this other group of material as a second collection at a later date.

Biographical Sketch

Reverend James Bernard Macelwane, S.J. (1883-1956)

James Bernard Macelwane was born September 28, 1883, in Ottawa County, Ohio, on the shore of Sandusky Bay off Lake Erie, about four miles southeast of Port Clinton, Ohio.  He was the second oldest of nine children (five boys and four girls) born to Alexander and Catherine (Carr) Macelwane.  Their first child, a girl, died in infancy, so James was the oldest of the children who grew up together.

He attended public elementary school in the Port Clinton area, but quit school at the age of 15 to work in his father's farming and fishing business.  Even during this period when he was not attending school, young Macelwane continued to read, study, and write.  After two years of this work for his father, the family decided that James should enter St. John's High School in Toledo, Ohio.  This he did in 1901.  He completed three years of high school courses in two years, and then he was determined to seek admission into the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits) to become a Catholic priest.

In August, 1903, Macelwane was admitted to the Jesuit novitiate in Cleveland, Ohio.  As part of his Jesuit training, he studied at Saint Louis University in St. Louis, Missouri, where he received the A.B. degree in 1910 and the M.A. in 1911, both in philosophy.  He also took courses in ancient and modern languages, literature and history, natural sciences and mathematics, philosophy, psychology, and theology.  He was ordained to the priesthood in St. Louis in 1918.

Macelwane had a strong liking for classical languages and he looked forward to a career in teaching Latin and Greek.  But his Jesuit superiors, noting his natural facility in the sciences, advised him to pursue further studies in physics, mathematics, and geology.

In 1921, Father Macelwane enrolled at the University of California at Berkeley to continue studies in the sciences.  His major field in graduate school at Berkeley was physics, with minors in geology and mathematics, but his dissertation was actually in the field of geophysics.  He received his PhD from the University of California in 1923.  Macelwane was asked by special request of the director of the Department of Geology at Berkeley to stay on at the University.  This he did for two years as an assistant professor in geology, organizing the University's graduate program in geophysics.

Father Macelwane left the University of California in 1925 to come to Saint Louis University where he established the first department of geophysics in the western hemisphere.  Over time, he expanded the scope of the geophysics program to include research and courses in seismology, earthquakes, industrial or blast vibrations, exploration geophysics, and meteorology.  He served as dean of Saint Louis University's Graduate School from 1927 to 1933, and he was also a member of the University Board of Trustees.  During 1931 and 1932, Father Macelwane accepted the responsibility of being the chair of the Jesuit Commission on Higher Studies.  At the request of the Jesuit Father General, this Commission studied in great detail the higher educational work of the Society of Jesus in the United States.  The report issued by the Commission has been commonly called the "Macelwane Report."

In 1944, he established the Institute of Technology (IT) as a separate school within Saint Louis University.  The Institute offered a curricula in engineering as well as the earth and atmospheric sciences.  Father Macelwane was the Institute's first dean, a position he held until his death.

Father Macelwane was a very active scholar.  He wrote two books, contributed chapters to several others, and wrote or presented more than 130 scientific papers.  He was one of the primary forces behind the establishment of both the Jesuit Seismological Association and the Seismological Society of America.  He was the recipient of numerous honorary degrees and professional awards or certificates.  Father Macelwane served on several advisory committees to the United States government, including the National Science Board of the National Science Foundation.

He died on February 15, 1956, of a liver infection after an illness of approximately two months.  Father Macelwane had not been feeling well, however, for nearly two years, yet he continued to read, write, research, and help others right up to the time of his death.

Scope and Content Note

The James B. Macelwane Manuscript Collection provides an interesting picture of both the personal and professional life of the Reverend James Bernard Macelwane, S. J.  From the days of his youth in northern Ohio to his position as a respected scientist and internationally known expert in seismology, this collection supplies valuable evidence of the varied activities undertaken by Father Macelwane.  The collection contains items from c.1885 until 1962, with the bulk of the material spanning the period 1920 - 1956.

Information on Macelwane's early life is included in the personal series of documents.  Of particular interest here is the autobiography which Father Macelwane wrote in 1953 at the request of Father Paul Reinert, President of Saint Louis University.  Numerous pieces of personal correspondence between Father Macelwane and his family may be found here also.

Since he was so well known among the scientific community around the world, Father Macelwane's untimely death generated a tremendous volume of correspondence, expressions of sympathy, and other writings.  These items, which may be found in the fatal illness series, provide the researcher with some idea as to how well respected his opinions were and how wide Father Macelwane's reputation had spread.

Some indication of the special personal friendship and professional relationship which existed between Father Macelwane and Father Blum may be found in the series of documents related to Father Blum.  Of particular note here is the correspondence between Father Blum and members of the Macelwane family.

Although the collection does contain some professional correspondence between Father Macelwane and other scientists, the volume here is surprisingly small.  His professional activities are represented in a professional organizations series, while the numerous personal and professional awards and other recognitions Father Macelwane received may be found in their own series of documents.

The largest, and probably the most interesting set of documents in this collection is the scholarly/professional works series.  This series consists of nearly 270 professional addresses, articles, notes, papers, and reports which Father Macelwane either wrote or presented during his outstanding career as a geophysicist and seismologist.  Some of these documents are typewritten originals, while many are photocopies of originals.  His notes on various geologic field trips he took in the American west are exciting reading, while his articles and papers discussing earthquake prediction and constructing earthquake proof buildings are rather timely, fifty years after they were written.

Series

The collection is organized into ten series:

1. Personal
2. Fatal Illness & Death
3. Blum, Victor J.
4. Awards, Certificates, Recognitions
5. Professional Correspondence
6. Professional Organizations/Activities
7. Financial Documents
8. Legal Documents
9. Record Books
10. Scholarly/Professional Works