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Dr. John Henry Ott

Northwestern University

1910

06 24 In honor of twenty five years of professional activity in educational fields, Dr. John Henry Ott, vice president of Northwestern University, was feted by alumni and patrons of the institution on Tuesday.

Upon receiving the M. A. degree he was installed as professor of English at Northwestern in 1885. At the same time he was placed in charge of the reference library which, due to his efforts, has been increased to a collection of 10,000 volumes.

Athletics were closely followed by him. For a number of years he acted as supervisor of gymnastic instruction. Having attended Amherst College for some time, he later continued his studies in philology and history at the universities of Oxford, Halle and Berlin, collaborating with such scholars as Prof. Lenz, the historian, and Dr. Treitschke. In 1892 the degree of doctor of philosophy was conferred upon him.

Returning to this country after extensive travels in England, he again assumed the chair of English and history at Northwestern. In 1907 he was chosen vice president, which office he still occupies.

He is a ranking member of the American Modern Language Association and correspondent for the Royal Chaucer Society of England. WG

1917, Watertown library citation