William Peterfield Trent
Encyclopedia
William Peterfield Trent, LL.D., D.C.L. (10 November 1862 – 1939) was a professor of English literature at Columbia University
, an American editor, and a historian.
. His grandfather, Joseph Trent, had an M.D.had degree from the University of Pennsylvania
. His father, Peterfield Trent, was a surgeon for the Confederate during the war, and his mother, nee Lucy Carter Burwell, came from a long line of Virginians. In 1896 William P.Trent married Alice Lyman. They had two children, Lucia Trent Chaney and William P. Trent Jr.
Trent was first educated at Thomas Norwood's University School. In 1880 he began studying at the University of Virginia
where his fellow students included Woodrow Wilson
and Oscar W. Underwood. Here he became the editor of the Virginia University Magazine before graduation. He left with a master of arts. In 1887 he began studying at Johns Hopkins University
. He was a member of the Seminary of Historical Political Science that was directed by Herbert B. Adams. It was rare for a student to read more than one report per academic year for the Seminary, but Trent read three.
while still in school. He was professor of English and the acting professor of history in Sewanee, Tennessee
, from 1888 until 1900, and from 1893 was dean of the academic department. While there, he founded (1892) and edited The Sewanee Review
. He also created the Sewannee Historical Society at the University of the South and spoke with Vanderbilt Southern History Society at Nashville. Both groups were developed in the hopes of building a stronger collection of history in the south.
In 1900, he became professor of English literature at Columbia University, in New York City
. There he turned his attention to the study of Daniel Defoe
and to English history and literature of the 1680 to 1730 period. He edited Robinson Crusoe
and wrote a biography and bibliography of Defoe in ten volumes (in manuscript to 1916).
Original published works:
Edited works:
He collaborated in numerous literary undertakings, for example Colonial Prose and Poetry, editions of Shakespeare and Thackeray and the Cambridge History of American Literature.
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, an American editor, and a historian.
Biography
He was born in Richmond, VirginiaRichmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...
. His grandfather, Joseph Trent, had an M.D.had degree from the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
. His father, Peterfield Trent, was a surgeon for the Confederate during the war, and his mother, nee Lucy Carter Burwell, came from a long line of Virginians. In 1896 William P.Trent married Alice Lyman. They had two children, Lucia Trent Chaney and William P. Trent Jr.
Trent was first educated at Thomas Norwood's University School. In 1880 he began studying at the University of Virginia
University of Virginia
The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson...
where his fellow students included Woodrow Wilson
Woodrow Wilson
Thomas Woodrow Wilson was the 28th President of the United States, from 1913 to 1921. A leader of the Progressive Movement, he served as President of Princeton University from 1902 to 1910, and then as the Governor of New Jersey from 1911 to 1913...
and Oscar W. Underwood. Here he became the editor of the Virginia University Magazine before graduation. He left with a master of arts. In 1887 he began studying at Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
. He was a member of the Seminary of Historical Political Science that was directed by Herbert B. Adams. It was rare for a student to read more than one report per academic year for the Seminary, but Trent read three.
Career
Trent accepted an offer to teach at Sewanee, The University of the SouthSewanee, The University of the South
The University of the South is a private, coeducational liberal arts college located in Sewanee, Tennessee. It is owned by twenty-eight southern dioceses of the Episcopal Church and its School of Theology is an official seminary of the church. The university's School of Letters offers graduate...
while still in school. He was professor of English and the acting professor of history in Sewanee, Tennessee
Sewanee, Tennessee
Sewanee is an unincorporated locality in Franklin County, Tennessee, United States, treated by the U.S. Census as a census-designated place . The population was 2,361 at the 2000 census...
, from 1888 until 1900, and from 1893 was dean of the academic department. While there, he founded (1892) and edited The Sewanee Review
Sewanee Review
The Sewanee Review is a literary journal established in 1892 and the oldest continuously published periodical of its kind in the United States. It incorporates original fiction and poetry, as well as essays, reviews, and literary criticism...
. He also created the Sewannee Historical Society at the University of the South and spoke with Vanderbilt Southern History Society at Nashville. Both groups were developed in the hopes of building a stronger collection of history in the south.
In 1900, he became professor of English literature at Columbia University, in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. There he turned his attention to the study of Daniel Defoe
Daniel Defoe
Daniel Defoe , born Daniel Foe, was an English trader, writer, journalist, and pamphleteer, who gained fame for his novel Robinson Crusoe. Defoe is notable for being one of the earliest proponents of the novel, as he helped to popularise the form in Britain and along with others such as Richardson,...
and to English history and literature of the 1680 to 1730 period. He edited Robinson Crusoe
Robinson Crusoe
Robinson Crusoe is a novel by Daniel Defoe that was first published in 1719. Epistolary, confessional, and didactic in form, the book is a fictional autobiography of the title character—a castaway who spends 28 years on a remote tropical island near Trinidad, encountering cannibals, captives, and...
and wrote a biography and bibliography of Defoe in ten volumes (in manuscript to 1916).
Original published works:
- English Culture in Virginia (1889)
- William Gilmore Simms (1892)
- Southern Statesmen of the Old Régime (1897)
- The Authority of Criticism (1899)
- Robert E. Lee (1899)
- John Milton (1899)
- War and Civilization (1901)
- Progress of the United States during the Nineteenth Century (1901)
- A History of American Literature 1807-1865 (1903)
- A Brief History of American Literature (1904)
- Greatness in Literature, and Literary Addresses (1905)
- Longfellow and Other Essays (1910)
- Great American Writers (with John ErskineJohn Erskine (educator)John Erskine was a U.S. educator and author, born in New York City and raised in Weehawken, New Jersey. He graduated from Columbia University ....
) (1912) - Defoe — How to Know Him (1916)
- A New South View of Reconstruction
Edited works:
- Select Poems of Milton (1895)
- Essays of Macaulay (1897)
- Poems and Tales of Edgar Allan Poe (1898)
- Balzac's Comédie Humaine, school text (1900)
- Colonial Prose and Poetry, school text (with B. W. Wells, 3 vols., 1901)
- Southern Writers, Selections in Prose and Verse (1905)
He collaborated in numerous literary undertakings, for example Colonial Prose and Poetry, editions of Shakespeare and Thackeray and the Cambridge History of American Literature.