Carleton, William G. (William Graves), 1901-1982

Historian and political scientist.

William Graves Carleton, Professor of History and Political Science, is remembered as one of the University of Florida's most colorful lecturers and productive scholars. Known affectionately to his students as "Wild Bill", Carleton was a dynamic speaker in the classroom and widely sought for speaking engagements. As a scholar, his major fields of study were American politics and culture and international relations. He authored The Revolution in American Foreign Policy (1954), Technology and Humanism (1970), and hundreds of articles and book reviews.

Carleton was born in Evansville, Indiana, and came to the University of Florida as a student in 1924. In 1925 he returned to Indiana and attended the University of Indiana where he received his B.A. (1926) and an M.A. (1934). At Indiana he studied history under William O. Lynch with whom he continued to correspond. He came back to Florida in 1926 as a law student and instructor in history and political science. He was also a lecturer in the General Extension Division. He attained his Juris Doctor from the College of Law in 1931. His early years in Indiana and at the University of Florida are recollected in his memoir, Free Lancing Through the Century.

From 1940 to 1957, he was chairman of the Department of Social Sciences in the General (later University) College. Carleton was the principal architect of the American Institutions (C-1) curriculum and his classes in C-1 were often attended by up to 600 students. Carleton retired from the faculty in 1962. He was a close friend of Manning Dauer and C. Vann Woodward.

In addition to scholarly and classroom activities, Carleton was also active in Democratic Party politics and was an outspoken supporter of New Deal liberalism. During the1928 presidential election, Carleton was a stump speaker for Al Smith. His activities in support of Smith are also detailed in Free Lancing Through the Century. He was active in the 1932 and 1936 elections as well.

Carleton was keenly interested in international politics. In the years prior to World War II, Carleton made numerous speeches in favor of American neutrality and opposed Roosevelt's alliance with England. After Pearl Harbor, Carleton abandoned his isolationist position and became an enthusiast for world government and the United Nations Movement. Carleton worked with the Peace Aims Committee of the Rotary Club and delivered speeches before Win the Peace Meetings in Jacksonville and Tampa where he first outlined his internationalist position. In post-war years, Carleton was often critical of American foreign conduct.