Vincent Adams Renouf Papers

Dates

Majority of material found within 1887-1910

Scope and Content Note

The Vincent Adams Renouf papers span the period from 1887 to 1910. They consist of a total of 76 folders in seven boxes. Most of the material is in English, while a small amount is in German, Chinese and Japanese. This collection is organized into 10 series and can be views as having four sections that reflect Renouf's academic life in Germany and at Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore; his correspondence; his life, work and research in China; and several of Mrs. Renouf letters written after her husband's death.

The first section, documenting Renouf's academic studies, comprises the two series ACADEMIC TRANSCRIPTS FROM GERMANY and PAPERS AS A STUDENT AT JOHNS HOPKINS. The ACADEMIC TRANSCRIPTS FROM GERMANY consist of Renouf's student records and affidavits concerning his primary and secondary education in Germany. The PAPERS AS A STUDENT AT JOHNS HOPKINS consist of Renouf's class notes and essays, as well as a lecture delivered before the historical seminary of the Johns Hopkins University in 1899.

The second section, documenting Renouf's CORRESPONDENCE, comprises the letters he sent and received from 1901 to 1910 while he was in the U.S. and then in China. These letters mainly have to do with his employment and published book, as well as his research regarding China's population.

The third section documenting Renouf's life and work in China comprises the five series LEGAL DOCUMENTS, PAPERS AS A PROFESSOR IN CHINA, WRITINGS, COMMONPLACE BOOK AND MISCELLANEOUS NOTES, HOSPITAL RECEIPTS and REFERENCE MATERIALS AND EPHEMERA. The PAPERS AS A PROFESSOR IN CHINA consist of Renouf's lectures on history and economics, his grade book, examination questions for students and some of his students' essays. Different versions of his manuscript of Outlines of General History for Eastern Students and its galley proof and page proof are included in the WRITINGS series.

The final part of the collection is the CORRESPONDENCE OF MADAME V.A. RENOUF from June to August 1910.

Extent

2.8 Cubic Feet (7 boxes)

Language of Materials

English and German

Additional Description

Abstract

Correspondence (1901-1910) relating to Renouf's position as professor of history and political economy at Imperial Peiyang University (Kuo li pei yang ta hsüeh) and publication of his book, Outlines of General History (1909); affidavits (1887-1895) regarding his primary and secondary education; drafts (circa 1901-1910) of miscellaneous articles on Chinese and Japanese history and culture; lecture notes, student essays, and class record used while teaching in China (circa 1901-1910); notes, largely on natural sciences, taken as student at Johns Hopkins University (Baltimore, Md.) (1895-1899); essays written while attending Johns Hopkins University (1896); notes and typescripts on world history, together with ms. and typewritten drafts and page proofs (circa 1901-1907) of his book; and other material.

<emph render="bold">Biographical Sketch</emph>

Vincent Adams Renouf, son of Edward Renouf, was born on December 15, 1876, in Dusseldorf, Germany. Renouf spent his first seventeen years in Germany, where he received his primary and secondary education. In 1893, he attended Johns Hopkins University where his father was a professor of chemistry. Renouf's studies focused on science and history, as well as economics. He also spent some time at Harvard studying history and international law after leaving Johns Hopkins in 1898. In 1899, he accepted a job at the Roxbury Latin School in Massachusetts teaching German and history. In 1901, he traveled to Shanghai, China, to serve as Fourth Assistant B in the Chinese Imperial Maritime Customs service. In April 1903, he was detached from the service and accepted a professorship offered by the Imperial Peiyang University in Tientsin (now Tianjin University). While teaching history and political economy at the university, he wrote the book Outline of General History for Eastern Students that was published by Macmillan and Co. in 1908. Soon after beginning to research the population question in China, he was struck by typhus and died ten days later on May 4, 1910. He was survived by his German wife Lilli Pechmann Renouf and three children.