Articles and addresses, 1877-1941 and undated, 1877-1941 and undated

The writings in this subseries span the years 1877 to 1941 and include reprints, manuscript drafts, and book reviews. Some of the folders in this subseries contain letters from readers with comments on Lowell’s writings or addresses; other letters are from Lowell’s publishers regarding the publication of his remarks. Many of Lowell’s addresses were given at public events and were often reported on or republished in magazines, journals, newspapers, as proceedings of Societies, and in pamphlet form. The newspaper clippings in this subseries not only offer verbatim reports on Lowell’s remarks, but also provide contemporary reactions to his views. A few of the articles in this subseries were written by other scholars; these articles were presumably collected by Lowell.

Lowell’s life-long commitment to improving intellectual achievement and academic scholarship at Harvard is evident in Lowell's many writings in this subseries which recount the introduction of the concentration and distribution system, the general examination, the tutorial system, the reading period, and residence halls during his tenure as Harvard president. Moreover, the writings in this subseries reveal Lowell’s authoritative position in academia in the first-half of the twentieth century. Included in these writings are Lowell’s observations on the elective system at colleges and universities, the importance of universities in the building of character in a student, the role educational training plays in the survival of democracy, the significance of college rank and social life in colleges and universities, the impact of education on women, and the benefits of teaching the classics in schools.

The writings in this subseries highlight Lowell’s leading role in the marshaling of public opinion on behalf of American involvement in the League of Nations after World War I and greater economic and political cooperation among nations. These writings contain Lowell’s descriptions of the activities of the League to Enforce Peace, his opinions on the causes of war, his thoughts on the need for an international organization to preserve world peace, and his observations on the shortcomings of isolationism. Other writings include Lowell’s commentary on the uneasy and dangerous relations between nations in the 1930s, the prospects of preventing another World War, the successes and failures of the League of Nations, and the best way to keep the United States out of international conflict.

This subseries also includes Lowell’s commentary on local and national politics and illustrates his opposition to the New Deal programs adopted by the United States in the 1930s and his apprehension over the increased centralization of government. Additional writings include Lowell’s assessment of teachers in the Boston public schools, his remarks on the exemption from taxation given to educational institutions in Cambridge and Boston, and his views on the merits of the use of permanently appointed public officials for the administration of municipal government. This subseries also recounts the developments in the administration of government in the United States at the beginning of the twentieth century, including the creation of a permanent civil service system, the establishment of the initiative petition and referendum process, and the introduction of the council-manager form of government.