author

Elbert Jay Benton

1871–1946

A longtime Western Reserve University historian and teacher, he wrote widely on American history, diplomacy, and Cleveland's past. His work ranged from the Spanish-American War to regional history, giving readers both national scope and local detail.

1 Audiobook

Introductory American History

Introductory American History

by Elbert Jay Benton, Henry Eldridge Bourne

About the author

Born on March 23, 1871, in Dubuque, Iowa, Elbert Jay Benton became an author, educator, historian, and academic leader whose career was closely tied to Cleveland. He grew up in Kansas, earned degrees from Campbell College and Kansas City University, did graduate study at the University of Chicago, and received his Ph.D. from Johns Hopkins University in 1903.

That same year he joined Adelbert College, later part of Western Reserve University, as an instructor in history. He rose to full professor and in 1925 became the first dean of the newly organized Graduate School, continuing to teach until his retirement in 1941. He also served the Western Reserve Historical Society for many years and later became its director.

Benton wrote and coauthored a substantial body of historical work, including International Law and Diplomacy of the Spanish-American War, The Movement for Peace Without Victory During the Civil War, and studies of Cleveland and the Western Reserve Historical Society. He also contributed to major reference works, including the American Historical Review, the Dictionary of American Biography, and the Dictionary of American History. He died on March 28, 1946.