Christopher McKee is an American naval historian, librarian, and educator.

Early life and education

Mckee graduated from the University of St. Thomas in Houston in 1957 and completed his Master of Library Science degree at the University of Michigan

University of Michigan

The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...

 in 1960.

Professional career

McKee has worked at various institutions of higher learning as a librarian, historian, and educator. These institutions include Washington and Lee University

Washington and Lee University

Washington and Lee University is a private liberal arts college in Lexington, Virginia, United States.The classical school from which Washington and Lee descended was established in 1749 as Augusta Academy, about north of its present location. In 1776 it was renamed Liberty Hall in a burst of...

 (1958-1962), Southern Illinois University

Southern Illinois University

Southern Illinois University is a state university system based in Carbondale, Illinois, in the Southern Illinois region of the state, with multiple campuses...

, Edwardsville (1962-1972), and Grinnell College

Grinnell College

Grinnell College is a private liberal arts college in Grinnell, Iowa, U.S. known for its strong tradition of social activism. It was founded in 1846, when a group of pioneer New England Congregationalists established the Trustees of Iowa College....

 (1972-2006). McKee also held the Secretary of the Navy Research Chair in Naval History

Research Chair in Naval History

The Secretary of the Navy's Research Chair in Naval History was established in 1987 by the then Naval Historical Center, Department of the Navy . This competitive appointment was designed to support, for up to three years, a scholar in researching and writing a major monograph on the history of...

 at the Naval Historical Center

Naval Historical Center

The Naval History & Heritage Command is the official history program of the United States Navy and is located at the historic Washington Navy Yard in the District of Columbia.-Mission :...

 (1990-1991) and was a NEH fellow at the Newberry Library

Newberry Library

The Newberry Library is a privately endowed, independent research library for the humanities and social sciences in Chicago, Illinois. Although it is private, non-circulating library, the Newberry Library is free and open to the public...

 (1978-79).

Awards

McKee has been recognized nationally for his contributions to the study of naval history. Awards include the U.S. Naval History prize (1985) of the John Lyman Book awards of the North American Society for Oceanic History

North American Society for Oceanic History

The North American Society for Oceanic History is the national organization in the United States of America for professional historians, underwater archeologists, archivists, librarians, museum specialists and others working in the broad field of maritime history...

, and the Samuel Eliot Morison award of the USS Constitution Museum

USS Constitution Museum

The USS Constitution Museum "serves as the memory and educational voice of , by collecting, preserving, and interpreting the stories of "Old Ironsides" and the people associated with her."...

(1993).

Published works

• Edward Preble: A Naval Biography, 1761-1807 (1972)

• A Gentlemanly and Honorable Profession: The Creation of the U. S. Naval Officer Corps, 1794-1815 (1991)

• Sober Men and True: Sailor Lives in the Royal Navy, 1900-1945 (2002).

External links

• Guide to the Papers of Christopher McKee, Grinnell College