Rothrock, David A. (David Andrew), 1864-1949

Indiana University alumnus and professor of Mathematics.

After earning his AB from IU in 1892, he joined the Mathematics Dept. as an instructor while he pursued his MA, which he earned in 1893. While a professor at IU, he continued his education at the Univ. of Chicago and Univ. of Leipzig. He earned his PhD from the Univ. of Leipzig in 1898. In addition to serving Ind. Univ. his entire professional career, Prof. Rothrock served on the Bloomington City Council, the Indiana Legislature, and the State Conservation Committee. Rothrock retired in 1938 and passed away in 1949.

Born in Milltown, Indiana in 1864, David Andrew Rothrock graduated from the Northern Indiana Normal School in 1887. From 1881 1891, he was a teacher and principal in Indiana and Illinois schools. Rothrock received his AB in 1892 and his AM in 1893 from Indiana University. In 1892, he joined Indiana University's faculty as an instructor in the Mathematics Department. Serving as an assistant professor from 1895 1900, Rothrock continued his mathematical studies at the University of Chicago (1894 1895 and the summer of 1896) and the University of Leipzig (Germany), where he received his Ph.D in 1898.

As a professor in the Mathematics Department from 1895 1937, Rothrock was the author of textbooks for high school and college students, as well as a contributor to professional journals. In addition to his work in mathematics, Rothrock became the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences in 1920. In 1937, he resigned as Dean and Professor and served as the Director of Admissions for the 1937 1938 academic year. Retiring in 1938, Rothrock was named Professor Emeritus of Mathematics, a title he held until his death in 1949. Except for the time he spent studying at the Universities of Chicago and Leipzig, and a summer he spent as professor of Mathematics at the West Michigan Normal School, David Andrew Rothrock served Indiana University continuously from graduation until retirement.

Besides being a member of various mathematical societies, Rothrock served on the Bloomington City Council from 1918 1926, and as a member of the Indiana Legislature in 1919 and 1920. He also served on the State Conservation Committee from 1925 1933.

David Andrew Rothrock was the author of Invariants of the Finite Continuous Groups of the Plane (1899); Essentials of Algebra for Secondary Schools (1904); Supplementary Examples in Algebra (1906); Essentials in High School Mathematics: A Synopsis (1907); Solid Geometry(1909); Plane and Spherical Trigonometry (1910); Mathematical Tables (1910); Logarithmic, Trigonometric and Other Tables (1914); and High School Algebra (1928).

The David A. Rothrock Scholarships in Mathematics were established in 1956 through a gift to the Indiana University Foundation by Everett Antrim, a 1905 graduate who was a former student of Professor Rothrock.