Lester J. Cappon

Lester Jesse Cappon (September 18, 1900 – August 24, 1981) was an American historian and documentary editor, and served as archivist for Colonial Williamsburg, Inc.

Personal life

Cappon was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 1900, the son of local businessman[1] Jesse Cappon and his wife, Mary E. Geisinger Cappon.[2] He graduated from the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1922 where he was a member of Sigma Pi fraternity and Phi Beta Kappa.[3] He later received his masters and doctoral (1928) degrees in history from Harvard University.[4] He was married with two children and was a member of the Episcopal Church.[3]

Professional life

He began his career as a history professor and archivist at the University of Virginia, and later worked as an archivist at the College of William and Mary and for Colonial Williamsburg.[5] While at William and Mary, he was the Director of the Institute of Early American History and Culture and editor of The William and Mary Quarterly.[3]

Cappon wrote several books including Virginia Newspapers 1821-1935 and The Bibliography of Virginia History Since 1865.[3]

He was deeply involved professionally, and helped found the Society of American Archivists (SAA) and the Association of Documentary Editors. He served as the president of SAA from 1956 to 1957.[6]

At the end of his career, Cappon became a research fellow at the Newberry Library in Chicago. He died in Chicago on August 24, 1981.[7]

References
  1. "Lester Jesse Cappon". Find-a-Grave. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
  2. "Wisconsin Births and Christenings, 1826-1926".
  3. Marable, W.I. (Fall 1964). "Orchids To: Prominent Historian in Virginia" (PDF). The Emerald of Sigma Pi. Vol. 51 no. 3. p. 171.
  4. Cox, Richard J. (2005). "Lester J. Cappon and the Relationship of History, Archives, and Scholarship in the Golden Age of Archival Theory". American Archivist. 68 (Spring/Summer): 78. doi:10.17723/aarc.68.1.a10ju1xvu150626h.
  5. Cox, Richard J. (2011). "Founding Brothers: Leland, Buck, and Cappon and the Formation of the Archives Profession" (PDF). American Archivist. 74 (Supplement): 404:19–404:20. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
  6. "Presidents". Society of American Archivists. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
  7. "Lester J. Cappon, a Historian And Ex-Archivist, Dead at 80". The New York Times. August 27, 1981. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
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