Douglas Edward Leach Papers

Biographical Sketch

Douglas Edward Leach was born in Providence, Rhode Island, 27 May, 1920, the son of Arthur Edward and Saidee Raybold Leach. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Brown University in 1942, and from 1942 to 1946 he served as a deck officer in the U.S. Navy. Most of his sea duty was in the Pacific aboard the U.S.S. Elden. Following World War II, he earned his M.A. (1947) and Ph.D. (1952) from Harvard University. He married Brenda Mason in 1950, and the couple had two children, Carol Brenda and Bradford Raybold. Dr. Leach died July 1, 2003 in Nashville.

Leach began his career as a history professor at Bates College, Lewiston, Maine, where he taught from 1950 until 1956. In 1956, he joined the faculty at Vanderbilt University where he remained until his retirement in 1986. Dr. Leach was a leading authority on 17th century colonial American history. His books include Flintlock and Tomahawk: New England in King Philip's War; The Northern Colonial Frontier, 1607-1763; Arms for Empire: A Military History of the British Colonies in North America, 1607-1763; and Roots of Conflict: British Armed Forces and Colonial America, 1677-1763.

Among his numerous scholarly achievements were Fulbright Lectureships at the Universities of Liverpool, England and Auckland, New Zealand, and the Harvey Branscomb Distinguished Professorship in 1981-1982. He chaired Vanderbilt's Department of History from 1979 until 1982, and directed the Vanderbilt-in-England Program at the University of Leeds in 1974-1975.

Special Collections | Heard Library | Vanderbilt University

Copyright © Special Collections, Jean and Alexander Heard Library, Vanderbilt University
Last modified: April 10, 2008
For more information, contact us at: < >