Arthur Schlesinger, Jr.: As remembered by Henry Graff

Arthur Schlesinger was truly the country’s premier American historian. I considered him a friend of mine for almost all of my forty-six years in Columbia’s history department. I recall with pleasure correspondence with him when he was in the White House. It was glorious of him that he showed respect for and deep interest in other historians he admired who did not have his origins and opportunities in pursuing their careers. I felt flattered and honored by Arthur when he invited me to do a biography of Grover Cleveland for his American Presidents series that he was beginning to create for Times Books—a spectacular publication enterprise, almost complete now, that strangely was not mentioned in the New York Times’ obituary of Arthur.

In examining Arthur’s brilliant accomplishments, it should be recognized that his attachment to his father—a magnificent historian, too—was complete all his life. Not long after Kennedy’s assassination I had occasion to ask Arthur Sr. if his son was going to return to Harvard. (Arthur Sr. and I were serving together at the time on the National Historical Publications Commission, he having been appointed by President Truman and I by President Johnson.) “No,” he replied, “Arthur has always regarded Cambridge as a backwater.” I told this to Arthur one day at lunch a few years ago when he was working on the second volume of his autobiography. He seemed considerably distressed to hear that his father had reported this about him.

Arthur will be missed sorely not only by historians but by all who love good books–and liberalism.