Jacobsen, Jerome V. (Jerome Vincent), 1894-

Born on September 27, 1894, Chicago, IL; died on August 19, 1970, Chicago, IL. Historian, professor, author. Jerome Vincent Jacobsen, S.J., was the eldest of four sons born to James and Catherine Jacobsen. He attended St. Ignatius High School and Loyola University from 1909 to 1915. In 1915 he entered the Society of Jesus in Chicago and was ordained in 1928. Jacobsen received his A.B. from Gonzaga University in 1921 and an M.A. in Philosophy from Gonzaga in 1922. In 1927 he receive an M.A. in History from St. Louis University, and in 1934 he received a Ph. D. in History at the University of California, Berkley, where he worked under Herbert E. Bolton. Upon his return to Loyola University Chicago in 1934 Jacobsen became a professor in the History department, where he specialized in United States and Latin American history. He served as the superior of the Loyola Jesuit community and a member of Loyola's board of trustees. In addition to his scholarly contributions on Latin American history, Jacobsen is best known as the director of the Institute of Jesuit History at Loyola and editor of Mid-America, an historical review. He held both posts from 1935 until his death in 1970. As editor of Mid-America, Jacobsen is known for expanding the scope of the journal from one about Jesuits in the Mississippi Valley to one that included contributions from historians in all fields.