John Somerville papers, 1960-1985

Creator:: Somerville, John, 1905-1994
Extent:: 5.5 linear feet 11 boxes
Language:: English .
Scope and content:: Papers of Somerville, alumnus and brief Columbia professor, writer and political activist.
Biographical / historical:: Internationally known philosopher and peace activist who earned the Bertrand Russell Peace Award and the Gandhi Peace Prize. Born in New York City, Somerville earned three degrees from Columbia University and taught three decades at the City University of New York before moving to Southern California in 1967. Five of his 10 books on peace and philosophy were translated into Swedish, Danish, German, Russian and Japanese. Somerville coined and publicized the word omnicide as a warning against nuclear bombing. In his 70s, Somerville switched to writing plays, including "The Crisis" which dealt with ethical issues involved in President John F. Kennedy's handling of the 1962 Cuban missile crisis. He won the Gandhi award given by the Connecticut-based group Promoting Enduring Peace in 1986 and the Russell award earlier. Somerville founded several peace organizations, including International Philosophers for Prevention of Nuclear Omnicide.

Acquisition information:

accn number: Source of acquisition--[source of acquisition]. Method of acquisition--Gift, Purchase, etc; Date of acquisition--date.

Processing information:

Collection-level record describing unprocessed material made public in summer 2018 as part of the Hidden Collections initiative.

Papers processed mmb 5/2/1999.

Papers appraised appraiser [date].

Arrangement:

Not organized.

Accruals:

Materials may have been added to the collection since this finding aid was prepared. Contact rbml@columbia.edu for more information.

Access and use

Restrictions:

Material is unprocessed. Please contact rbml@columbia.edu for more information.

This collection is located off-site. You will need to request this material at least three business days in advance to use the collection in the Rare Book and Manuscript Library reading room.

This collection has no restrictions.

Terms of access:

Reproductions may be made for research purposes. The RBML maintains ownership of the physical material only. Copyright remains with the creator and his/her heirs. The responsibility to secure copyright permission rests with the patron.

Preferred citation:: Identification of specific item; Date (if known); John Somerville Papers; Box and Folder; Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Columbia University Library.

Location of this collection:: Rare Book & Manuscript Library

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Collection