1972 Fredericton Encaenia
Anderson, Nels
Doctor of Laws (LL.D.)
Orator: Condon, Thomas J.
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Image Caption
L to R: Sir Max Aitken, Nels Anderson
Second Image Caption
Source: PR(5)-7365; Photo by Stone's Studio
Citation:
ENCAENIA, MAY, 1972
NELS ANDERSON
to be Doctor of Laws
Nels Anderson is a fascinating mix of many things. A sociologist, scholar, novelist, poet, administrator and great teacher, he is above all a student of man and society whose curiosity knows no bounds and whose energies seem inexhaustible.
Born in Chicago in 1889 he grew up in the American west when much of it was still frontier, despite the claim of the 1890 census that the United States had technically run out of frontier a year after his birth. He tried his hand at many things -- mining, lumbering, ranching, and farming before completing high school at the age of 25. He then took his first degree at Brigham Young University and went on to graduate work in Sociology at the University of Chicago, and a doctoral programme at New York University. His first book, The Hobo, was published in 1923 and has since become a classic. His Urban Sociology, published in 1928 was one of the first textbooks in the field. Any attempt to describe his prolific publication record would be futile, for Anderson has, quite simply, written more in his life-time than many men have read in theirs.
Dr. Anderson joined forces with President Roosevelt's New Deal as it attempted to deal with the massive problems of that depression era in American life. He was one of the first professionally trained public servants to work in the areas of unemployment and social welfare, and he continued this pioneering role as a social administrator until 1953, serving in Washington and a variety of overseas posts. He then went on to become Director of the Social Science Research Institute established by UNESCO in Cologne, serving there for nine years.
Nels Anderson became a Visiting Professor at the University of New Brunswick in 1965 and to our great delight has been visiting ever since. He is an inspiration and model to students and faculty alike, a constant reminder of what a university is all about. In anticipation of today's honour, his department colleagues presented him recently with a rocking chair knowing full well that to some men this would be a sign to slow down, but that to Nels Anderson it would be a means to the increased agitation that has been his life.
From: Honoris Causa - UA Case 70, Box 1
NELS ANDERSON
to be Doctor of Laws
Nels Anderson is a fascinating mix of many things. A sociologist, scholar, novelist, poet, administrator and great teacher, he is above all a student of man and society whose curiosity knows no bounds and whose energies seem inexhaustible.
Born in Chicago in 1889 he grew up in the American west when much of it was still frontier, despite the claim of the 1890 census that the United States had technically run out of frontier a year after his birth. He tried his hand at many things -- mining, lumbering, ranching, and farming before completing high school at the age of 25. He then took his first degree at Brigham Young University and went on to graduate work in Sociology at the University of Chicago, and a doctoral programme at New York University. His first book, The Hobo, was published in 1923 and has since become a classic. His Urban Sociology, published in 1928 was one of the first textbooks in the field. Any attempt to describe his prolific publication record would be futile, for Anderson has, quite simply, written more in his life-time than many men have read in theirs.
Dr. Anderson joined forces with President Roosevelt's New Deal as it attempted to deal with the massive problems of that depression era in American life. He was one of the first professionally trained public servants to work in the areas of unemployment and social welfare, and he continued this pioneering role as a social administrator until 1953, serving in Washington and a variety of overseas posts. He then went on to become Director of the Social Science Research Institute established by UNESCO in Cologne, serving there for nine years.
Nels Anderson became a Visiting Professor at the University of New Brunswick in 1965 and to our great delight has been visiting ever since. He is an inspiration and model to students and faculty alike, a constant reminder of what a university is all about. In anticipation of today's honour, his department colleagues presented him recently with a rocking chair knowing full well that to some men this would be a sign to slow down, but that to Nels Anderson it would be a means to the increased agitation that has been his life.
From: Honoris Causa - UA Case 70, Box 1
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