James J. Horgan (July 14, 1940 – May 3, 1997) was an American historian, academic and author. He was a history professor at Saint Leo University in St. Leo, Florida for 35 years, a historical society president, a Florida Historical Society board member, a prolific author and an NAACP chapter founder. He is listed as a Great Floridian.[1]
He was head of the history department at Saint Leo University from the 1960s through the mid 1990s until just before his death due to cancer. Horgan was a member of the Tampa chapter of Mensa.[citation needed]
Born in Springfield, Massachusetts, Horgan received his Ph.D. in history in 1965 from Saint Louis University. In 1968, he was a founding officer of the Pasco County, Florida chapter of the NAACP, and the same year received a distinguished service award from the Florida NAACP.[1]
Horgan authored Pioneer College: The Centennial History of Saint Leo College, Saint Leo Abbey, and Holy Name Priory, chronicling the founding of Saint Leo in 1889 as a boys' preparatory school and its evolution over the following century to university status.
Legacy
editThe Florida Historical Society's James J. Horgan Award is named in his honor.[2] Saint Leo University has a fund named in his honor, the James J. Horgan Heritage Society.[3]
His "Great Floridian" plaque is installed at the James J. Horgan Home in San Antonio, Florida near Saint Leo University.[1]
Books
edit- Florida Decades: A Sesquicentennial History, 1845-1995 with Lewis N. Wynne (1995)
- The Historic Places of Pasco County (1992)
- City of Flight: The History of Aviation in St. Louis
- Social Justice: Teachings of Catholics, Protestants, Jews, and Muslims with Lucy Fuchs and Jeanine Jacob (1992)
- Pioneer College: The Centennial History of Saint Leo College, Saint Leo Abbey, and Holy Name Priory (1989)
- The Reagan Years: Perspectives & Assessments with Joseph A. Cernik (1988)
- Samuel Pasco of Pasco County (1987)
- Hail the Passing, Guard the Tomb: Voter Literacy Tests (1982)
References
edit- ^ a b c "James J. Horgan" (PDF). State of Florida. Retrieved March 7, 2015.
- ^ "Florida Historical Society Awards". State of Florida. Archived from the original on March 7, 2015. Retrieved March 7, 2015.
- ^ "The James J. Horgan Heritage Society". Saint Leo University. Retrieved May 1, 2017.