Laprade, William Thomas, 1883-1975

William Thomas Laprade was Professor of History at Trinity College (now Duke University) from 1909 to 1953 and Chair of the Department of History from 1938 to 1952.

William Thomas Laprade was born in Franklin County, Va. in 1883. As a young adult, he practiced speaking in his community's debating society and as a teacher in the Sunday School. Laprade received a bachelor's degree from Washington Christian College in Washington, D.C. (1906) and taught Latin and mathematics from 1906 to 1907. He was concurrently a teacher, graduate student at Johns Hopkins University, and minister of the Antioch Christian Church near Vienna, Va. Laprade received a doctorate in History from Johns Hopkins University in spring of 1909.

Later in 1909, Laprade joined the faculty of Trinity College (now Duke University), becoming Trinity's first teacher of British and European history. Laprade specialized in the history of 18th century Europe and occasionally preached sermons. Students testified that his most memorable and successful courses were intense seminars conducted in his home. Laprade was Chair of the History Department and Chair of the American Association of University Professors during the period after World War II during McCarthyism attacks on alleged communists in government. Laprade insisted on total freedom of inquiry for scholars.

Laprade was manager of the Trinity College bookstore (then known as the "Book Room") from 1912 to 1926. He spent time in England from 1926 to 1927, acquiring many important English books for the bookstore. The books ultimately became part of the library's collection of British materials. Laprade was the first editor of the Trinity College Press (1922-1926), director of the Duke University Press (1944-1951), and editor of the South Atlantic Quarterly (1944-1957).

Off campus, Laprade was a "Minute Man" speaker during World War I, and lectured on history and politics to secretaries enrolled in YMCA army training schools. He was also a charter member of the Durham Kiwanis Club, and rumored to have attended every meeting from 1920 to 1975. Laprade served the State of North Carolina as a member of the North Carolina Commission on Race Relations, President of the North Carolina State Literary and Historical Association, and executive board member of the North Carolina Department of Archives and History.

Laprade was a member of several professional and honorary societies, including Phi Beta Kappa and the Royal Historical Society of England. In April, 1975, Laprade was awarded an honorary degree of doctor of letters by Duke University on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the school. The North Carolina Historical Commission passed a resolution in 1975 honoring the life work of Laprade.

Laprade was an avid letter writer; his family letters reflect life in the southern United States during World War I, the Great Depression, and World War II. Laprade died in June 1975 at 91 years of age.