Still, Bayrd

From 1947-1987, Dr. Bayrd Still (1906-1992) served New York University as an historian, archivist, teacher, and administrator. From 1947-1974 he was a professor at NYU in the department of history, for which he also served as chair from 1955-1970. Additionally, Still was acting dean for both the undergraduate College of Arts and Sciences and the Graduate School of Arts and Science from 1958-1959, and again from 1959-1960. President James M. Hester established the Office of Archivist in 1967, appointing Bayrd Still as Chair of the Advisory Committee on the History of New York University. Still played a key role in the founding of the university archives project until 1975, when he finally assumed the title of University Archivist. He was an authority on United States urban development and westward expansion. His interests in urban development and historic preservation were reflected in his commitments to projects that extended beyond the University. He worked with the architect Geoffrey Platt on some historic preservation activities. In 1961, Still served as supervisor for New York University graduate fellowships with the New York Community Trust, a landmarks marking project begun in 1956. In 1962, Mayor Robert F. Wagner appointed Still to the Landmarks Preservation Commission. The duties of the commission included nominating sites to designate as landmarks and formulating the landmarks preservation law, which was eventually passed in 1965. Although Still resigned from the landmark commission in April of 1965 citing time constraints, he maintained a keen interest in the commission's developments. Still also served on the Mayors Task Force on Municipal Archives in New York. In 1975, he became the Chairman of the Advisory Board for the Brooklyn Rediscovery Project. He was a member of the New York Historical Society, the American Studies Association, and the Society of American Historians. In the 1980s, Still organized and conducted walking tours of NYU and Greenwich Village.