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James Stacy Coles Papers,
1928-1982.
16.25
linear feet
Catalog Number:
M38
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Agency History / Biographical Note:
James Stacy Coles was president of Bowdoin College from 1952 to 1967. He
was born in Mansfield, Pennsylvania, on June 3, 1913, to Edwin Stacy
Coles, publisher of the local newspaper, and Emavieve Rose Coles. Coles
earned degrees from Mansfield State Teachers College (1934) and Columbia
University (1936; with advanced degrees in 1939 and 1941). After earning
his Ph.D. from Columbia, Coles became Instructor of Chemistry at College
of the City of New York (1936-1941); Assistant Professor of Chemistry,
Middlebury College (1941-1943); and Research Supervisor at Underwater
Explosives Laboratory, Oceanographic Institute, in Woods Hole,
Massachusetts (1943-1946). In 1946 he took a position as Assistant, then
Associate Professor of Chemistry, and Acting Dean at Brown University.
He held this post until 1952, when he became the president of Bowdoin
College. Under Coles's leadership, the College's science department
modernized, programs for gifted students and low-income students were
implemented, and an independent studies program began. Coles's
presidency also witnessed a major building program, which included
construction of Coles Tower, Wentworth Hall and Chamberlain Hall
(1964). Coles was chairman of the Maine Higher Education Advisory
Committee (1965-1967), which helped establish the University of Maine
System. He also co-authored Physical Principles of Chemistry
(1964) with R.H. Cole. In 1967, Coles resigned the presidency of Bowdoin
to become president of The Research Corporation in New York City. He
retired from The Research Corporation in 1982, but remained as chairman
of its executive committee until 1984. Coles died in Falmouth,
Massachusetts, on June 13, 1996.
Scope and Content:
The collection comprises Coles's personal papers, including Bowdoin
correspondence (1971-1982); speeches (1952-1986); personal
correspondence (1969-1984); Navy Intelligence, Europe/Woods Hole
(1942-1946); chemistry lectures and notes (1954-1961); drafts, revised
manuscripts, and text copies of chapters for Physical Principles of
Chemistry; chemistry grade books (1939-1941, City College; 1942-43;
1954-1959); research notes; Columbia University papers and notes
(1938-41); copies of Scientific American (May 1948; April 1950),
The Nation (February 1949), and Chemical Engineering News
covers (1946-1952); Brown University correspondence (1946-1952); and
ephemera. For related materials, see the James Stacy Coles Administrative Records.
Cite as:
James Stacy Coles Papers, George J. Mitchell Department of Special Collections & Archives, Bowdoin College Library.
Access Restrictions:
None.
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