Russell L. Caldwell

Russell Leon Caldwell (1904-1979) was an American historian, educator, and community activist.

He was born August 13, 1904, in Farrell, Pennsylvania, and died May 23, 1979, at Daniel Freeman Memorial Hospital in Inglewood, California, due to cardiovascular disease at the age of 74.

Caldwell received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Hiram College (OH) in 1927.

While at Hiram, he was involved in the Delphic Literary Society, Pi Kappa Delta Debate Society, and the Men's Self-Government Society.

He taught at Wooster (OH) High School from 1930 to 1944.

The location is at the current intersection of University Avenue and West 32nd Street on land now occupied by Troy (Residence) Hall and across the street from the 32nd Street USC Magnet School.

Caldwell wrote and narrated 65 radio programs on American history for the Storer Broadcasting Co. of Miami and KGBS Los Angeles.

Caldwell received his Master of Arts and Ph.D. degrees in History from the University of Southern California (USC) in 1933 and 1948, respectively.

His Master's thesis was titled An Historical Study of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux as Persecutor of Abelard; his doctoral dissertation was on The Influence of the Federal Bar Upon the Interpretation of the Constitution Under John Marshall.

Caldwell and his wife, Ruth, were married September 2, 1934, in Toledo, Ohio, in a ceremony performed by Ruth's father, the Reverend B. T. Burnworth.

Their son, Stanley Russell Caldwell, was born in Wooster, Ohio, where Caldwell was teaching in the high school before the family moved to southern California.

Their daughter, Ruth, taught for many years at Luther College (Decorah, Iowa).

Caldwell joined the USC faculty in 1945 as a member of the Department of History specializing in Early American History, American Intellectual-Cultural History, and European-American Relations.

In 1946, he also became Chair of the Department of General Studies in American Civilization and Institutions.

His honorary and professional organization memberships included: The American Historical Society; the Mississippi Valley Historical Association; Phi Kappa Phi (all-university national scholarship society); Phi Alpha Theta (national history honor society); Pi Kappa Delta (national speech and debate honor society); Tau Kappa Alpha (national honor society in journalism and mass communications); and the American Association of University Professors (AAUP).

While on the USC faculty, Caldwell served as secretary and later president of the local chapter of the AAUP; president of what was renamed the Faculty Center after he successfully pressed for the merger of the Men's Faculty Club and the Women's Faculty Club; member of the University Faculty Senate; member of the University Committee on Directed Teaching; and faculty sponsor for numerous student organizations.

During the 1950s, Caldwell was an outspoken critic of the U.S. House of Representatives Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) and of Senator Joseph McCarthy and his pursuit of alleged Communists through the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations.

In 1954, Shivers had been an outspoken critic of the Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (KS) U.S. Supreme Court decision (347 U.S. 483).

The petition to cancel the appearance of Gov. Shivers was rejected by USC President Fagg.

There was speculation that these faculty protestors would stage an organized demonstration at the commencement ceremonies, but this did not take place.

In 1955, Caldwell organized a petition drive, signed by 135 of his USC faculty colleagues as well as ministers who were members of the Southern California Baptist Ministers Union, protesting the selection of Texas Governor Robert Allan Shivers (1949–1957) as USC Commencement speaker at the graduation ceremonies.

In 1959, Caldwell became active in the Hoover Urban Renewal Project.

He was appointed by the Mayor of Los Angeles as secretary of the Hoover Urban Renewal Advisory Committee (HURAC).

Later he was named to the Mayor's Committee of Consultants on Urban Renewal.

Caldwell also organized unsuccessful neighborhood efforts to block construction of the Harbor Freeway (US 110) just east of the University Park Campus.

Freeway construction required demolition of much low-income housing throughout South Los Angeles.

In June 1971, Caldwell received a commendatory resolution from the Los Angeles City Council.

The commendation was presented by Councilmember Pat Russell, herself a long-time advocate on behalf of residents threatened with displacement by urban renewal.

Caldwell served as president of the Board of Trustees of the West Adams Presbyterian Church, located just a few blocks north of the University Park Campus, which he and his family attended.

He was shunned by many of his USC colleagues as well as by many USC alumni, publicly rebuked by USC President Fred D. Fagg, Jr., and had his classes infiltrated by California un-American activities committee investigators (Eisley, Cindy. 1974. "Russell Caldwell: Up Against the World," Campus [U.C. Santa Barbara] (October 23): 1–3).

He also was able to force the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) to rehire several of its faculty who had been terminated for their supposed political beliefs.

He was publicly labelled a Communist on television in a broadcast of the Freedom Forum.

He also served as president of the USC Retired Faculty Association in 1978–1979.

He initiated and taught history classes in Europe during summer sessions.

These courses combined travel with the study of European history and included interviews with leading European personalities involved in national and international affairs.

(SOURCE: USC News Bureau, n.d.; from the USC University Archives).

After formally retiring from USC, he was invited to create an institute for the study of U.S. presidential history at the University of California, Santa Barbara, but he declined and taught courses part-time on journalism, law, and government at USC until his death.

Among numerous students that he mentored, one, Carole Shammas, now holds a chair in the Department of History at USC.

His students also included football star Frank Gifford, who recalled his girlfriend urging him to take Caldwell's course "Man and Civilization."

Caldwell and his family lived in the neighborhood just north of the USC University Park Campus at 825 West 32nd Street.