author
Fred K. Fleagle
Best known for a 1917 study of Puerto Rico’s social conditions, this early 20th-century educator wrote with the eye of a teacher and the habits of a careful observer. His work blends statistics, public policy, and on-the-ground experience into a vivid snapshot of the island in a time of change.
1 Audiobook
Social Problems in Porto Rico
by Fred K. Fleagle
About the author
Fred K. Fleagle was an educator and writer whose best-known book, Social Problems in Porto Rico (1917), examined poverty, education, labor, and public health on the island. In the book’s foreword, he says he drew on about ten years of residence in Puerto Rico, and contemporary records identify him with the University of Porto Rico, where he served as dean.
Other surviving records show that Fleagle later taught Spanish at Davidson College. A Davidson yearbook lists him in Spanish Language and Literature and notes degrees connected with the University of Michigan, the University of Porto Rico, and the University of Chicago.
He does not appear to have left behind a large popular biography, but the available sources suggest a scholar deeply involved in language, education, and social research. A later professional notice recorded his death on February 19, 1948, identifying him as a professor at Davidson.