Historians
Nye, Russel
Feb. 17, 1913 – Sept. 2, 1993
Place of birth: Viola, Wisconsin
Place of Principle Residence: East Lansing, MI
Biography:
In 1913 Russel Nye was born to Charles and Zelma in Viola, Wisconsin. In 1934 Nye graduated from Oberlin College and went on to University of Wisconsin, where he received his Masters in 1935 and his Doctorate in 1938. He married Kathryn Chaney and the two had one son, Pete. Besides writing, teaching was Nye’s chief profession; he served as a Distinguished Professor Emeritus at Michigan State University for thirty-nine years. Nye’s first book George Bancroft: Brahmin Rebel, published in 1944, became a huge success, winning a Pulitzer Prize. Nye accredited the book’s origin to browsing through his grandfather’s library. Besides delving into historical figures, Nye enjoyed a colorful assortment of interests, such as jazz musicians Bix Beiderbecke, the Civil War battlefield at Gettysburg, comic strips from The Chicago Tribune, the “Gunsmoke” television series, Tom Swift and Horatio Alger books, hair styles, and automobile racing. He died in Lansing, Michigan on September 2, 1993.
Selected Works:
- George Bancroft: Brahmin Rebel (1945)
- Fettered Freedom: Civil Liberties and the Anti-Slavery Controversy (1947)
- A Baker’s Dozen: Thirteen Unusual Americans (1957)
- The Unembarrassed Muse: American Popular Culture (1970)
Awards:
- 1945 Pulitzer Prize, Biography
- 1947 Rockefeller Fellowship
- 1948 Newberry Library Fellowship
- 1977 Donner Medal, Donner Foundation and the Association for Canadian Studies
- 1978 Distinguished Service Award, Society for the Study of Midwestern History and Literature
- 1984 Distinguished Service Award, Michigan Council for the Humanities
- 1968 Litt.D., Northern Michigan University
- 1968, 1976 LL.D., Ferris State College; Bowling Green State University
- 1944 Knopf Fellowship
Critical Reception:
George Bancroft: Brahmin Rebel, Nye’s very first book, won enthusiastically received and won a Pulitzer Prize. New York times praised the author as “a prodigious scavenger of the trivial past” and that “reading his book is like spending an afternoon in a country antique store.”
Relevance of Place to Author’s Work:
Nye published much of his work during his thirty-nine years at Michigan State University.
Panagopoulos, Janie L.
December 17, 1955 -
Place of Birth: Owosso, MI
Place of Principle Residence: Roscoe, IL and Owosso, MI
Biography:
Janie L. Panagopoulos was born to Clyde and Betty Blount in Owosso, MI. Before starting school she could read, and in third grade started writing with the encouragement of her teacher. She attended Jewett’s Women’s College of Business and John Wesley College and graduated with an AA degree. Panagopoulos is a dedicated historian, spending two to five years researching for a writing project. She started out in advertising as a freelance writer for newspapers and magazines, and has had over 1,000 articles published between 1774 and 1992. Besides writing, Panagopoulos has taught courses in theater arts and playwriting, and has had several of her plays produced. After being an editor for Health Horizon Magazine in 1988-1990, Panagopoulos now works with students as an online mentor and workshop leader to develop their writing. In 1993 she published her first documentary historical fiction novel, Traders in Time. Since then she has been granted several awards, including the Michigan Authors Award in 2000 and the Read Michigan Award in 2001. Panagopoulos does much traveling for research, spending much time in Michigan. Panagopoulos lives with her husband, Dennis, in Illinois.
Selected Works:
- Little Ship Under Full Sail: An Adventure in History (1997)
- Train Called Midnight (1999)
- Journey Back to Lumberjack Camp (1994)
- Runes of Isle Royale (2000)
- Madame Cadillac’s Ghost (2004)
- Faraway Home: An Orphan Train Story (2007)
Awards:
- 2000 Michigan Author Award
- Short Story Awards and “Readers Choice” Awards
- 2003 Must Read Award
- 1998 Parent & Teacher Award
Critical Reception:
Panagopoulos is a noted Michigan author, and has received several awards including the prestigious Read Michigan Award that was granted by Michigan’s Governor Engler and Michigan’s Secretary of State Candace Miller. In addition to her awards, Panagopoulos has been nominated for many national, state, and regional awards.
Relevance of Place to Writing:
Spending an enormous amount of time on researching for novels is a part of Panagopoulos’ daily routine. She has traveled widely across the United States, especially Michigan, to study different histories, including canoeing over 3800 miles on the Great Lakes and Canadian waterways, living with traditional Native Americans, participating in archaeological digs, dog-sledding, snow-shoeing, and traveling with a wagon train. Her writing dedicated to Michigan has been acknowledged by receiving the Michigan Authors Award and the Read Michigan Award.
Parker, Virginia Bailey
September 25, 1947 -
Place of Birth: Chillicothe, OH
Place of Principle Residence: Canton, MI
Biography:
Virginia Bailey Parker was born to Virginia and John Bailey in Chillicothe, Ohio. She graduated with an AA degree from Henry Ford Community College in 1967 and a BA in history from Michigan State University in 1969. After earning her MS degree in historic preservation at Eastern Michigan University, Parker took additional graduate credits at the University of Michigan on heritage interpretation. Parker started off as a history teacher at Crestwood High School before becoming a professional writer and lecturer. She has led many workshops, including business and writing workshops at Ford Motor Company at various universities. In addition to writing and lecturing, Parker owns Snowy Creek Press that publishes books and offers a wide variety of writing and editing services, professional development seminars, and special projects including writing company histories. During her writing career she has researched and written about local folklore and has written many articles for magazines and newspapers. Her book The Water’s Edge won two national awards, including Book of the Year award from ForeWord magazine. She currently lives in Canton, MI with her husband Donald Parker.
Selected Works:
- The Water’s Edge (2001)
- An Oral History of Our Community (1995)
- Canton Township: A Community in Transition (1991)
Awards:
- 1995 Historical Society of Michigan Award of Merit for Canton Memories
- 1995 Historical Society of Michigan Award of Merit for Crossroads of Canton
- 1998, 1999 Managing editor of Michigan Psychiatric Society Newsletter when publication received two Certificates of Honorable Mentions and an Award for Five Years of Continued Excellence from the American Psychiatric Association
- 1997 Nominated for a national Oral History Association Media Award for the archival video series, Canton Memories
Critical Reception:
For The Water’s Edge:
The author has done her homework with this novel, which is filled with good historical research. And although this book is by no means something I would label feminist literature, it certainly has an underlying theme on the plight of seventeenth century English women, such as the fact that midwives were licensed by bishops because childbirth was considered more a religious matter than a medical one—and, even worse, that any midwife discovered doing anything to ease suffering during childbirth would have her license revoked. Highly recommended.
- The Historical Novels Review Magazine of the Historical Novel Society
Relevance of Place to Author’s Work:
Parker has devoted much time and energy into researching the local folklore of Canton, MI where she currently resides. In addition she has earned degrees in history, historical preservation, and heritage interpretation at Michigan universities.
Passic, Frank Jr.
April 19, 1953 -
Place of Birth: Albion, MI
Place of Principle Residence: Albion, MI
Biography:
Frank Passic, Jr was born to Frank, Sr and Pauline Passic in Albion, MI. After graduating from Albion High School, Passic attended Spring Arbor College and earned his BA degree in 1775. He is an advent researcher of Albion history and written and published much of his research. Passic has worked as a curator of local history and an Albion historian for the Albion Historical Society, and has been publishing articles on Albion history for the past twenty-five years. His weekly columns appear in the Morning Star Shopper, Albion Recorder, and The Mich-Matist.
Selected Works:
- History of Albion, MI From the Archives (1991)
- A Comprehensive Guide and Key to Artist Albert Ruger’s 1866 Bird’s Eye View of Albion, MI (1988)
- Albion’s Banks and Bankers (1985)
Awards:
- 1983 Heath Literary Award, American Numismatic Association, 1983
- Literary Awards, Michigan State Numismatic Society
- 1999 First Place Catherine Sheehan Literary Award for U.S. Paper Money Studies
- 1998 American Numismatic Association for article, “The Albion Bank Scandal.” in The Numismatist January 1998 issue
Relevance of Place to Author’s Work:
Passic has devoted most of his life to the history of Albion, and has done much writing on his research, publishing both books and articles for local magazines. He has access to many resources in Albion history, including Cemetery records and obituaries, family surname files, and photographs that he uses to help other Albion natives look into their family’s roots.
Peck, William H.
October 2, 1931 -
Place of Birth:
Place of Principle Residence:
Biography
William H. Peck was born to Mildred and William Peck in Savannah, Georgia. He attended Ohio State University and Wayne State University, graduated from the latter in 1961 with a Master’s Degree. Employed by the Detroit Institute of the Arts in 1960, Peck started as a curator in the education department and began a lifelong study on art and Egyptian history. Over the years, Peck has composed articles for journals, books, dictionaries, and encyclopedias, in addition to authoring his own books on Ancient Egypt and the history of the Detroit Institute of the Arts. The duration of his research has also led him to work as a field archaeologist with New York University and the Brooklyn Museum at Egypt excavations, and to give lectures across the United States. Peck now works as the senior curator for the Detroit Institute of the Arts and lives with his wife, Mildred, in Detroit and has four children: Alice An, Sarah, Louise, and William.
Selected Works:
- Splendors of Ancient Egypt (1997)
- Fann al-rasm ‘inda qudama’al-Misriyin (1987)
- Drawings from Ancient Egypt (1978)
Awards:
- 1962 Ford Motor Co. of England - Travel Grant
- 1971 American Research Center in Egypt Fellowship
- 1975 Smithsonian Instution Travel Grant
- 1985 Wayne State U. Award in the Arts for Distinguished Alumnus
Critical Reception
For Drawings from Ancient Egypt:
“The attractive book under review with its sixteen colour plates and 132 monochrome illustrations of drawings on ostraka, papyri, walls, and ceramics is likely to appeal to art-lovers who find it hard to come to terms with the impersonality of monumental Egyptian art. A brief introduction by Cyril Aldred explains the context of these scattered works, and William Peck provides a survey and informative commentaries of the illustrations. Here one’s only regret might be that the indications of measurements—so relevant in many cases—are relegated to the list of plates at the end of the book.”
- The Gombrich Archive
Relevance of Place to Author’s Work:
Peck has been employed at the Detroit Institute of the Arts since 1960. Besides using his experience there to study, write, and educate, he has also authored a book on the history of the Detroit Institute of the Arts.