Norman K. Risjord (November 25, 1931 – January 31, 2019) was an American professor, historian and author of early American history and the early history of the northern Midwest states. Risjord was a teacher at the University of Wisconsin for more than 30 years. Most of his research and writing was devoted to early American history involving the birth and development of political parties that emerged after the American Revolution to which he committed six separate volumes. His works also include Thomas Jefferson, Jeffersonian political thought, its influence in government, and the political parties before and during War of 1812. He has also written extensively on these topics in various historical journals. Several of Risjord's works are widely considered as the standard authority on the early American history of the U.S. party system. Risjord was twice awarded the Fulbright Lectureship, an international award given to distinguished professors.
Early life and education Risjord was born in Manitowoc, Wisconsin on November 25, 1931, and was raised in Kansas City, Missouri. In Virginia he attended the College of William and Mary from 1949 to 1953, where he was elected to the Phi Beta Kappa society in his junior year. He was also a three-year letterman on the university's swimming team. Risjord served in the Counterintelligence Corps in Berlin, 1954 to 1956. Thereafter he resumed his education at the University of Virginia where he earned his History Ph.D. in 1960. He then pursued a career as an author, lecturer, a host on Wisconsin NPR educational radio, and popular educator. His first scholarly focus produced many works in the early history of American government.Essay, 2019, University of WisconsinObituary, Omohundro Institute, 2021
Career
Risjord first began teaching at DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana. In 1964, he became a member of the history faculty at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, and was soon appointed a professor of history. There he lectured in the George L. Mosse Humanities Building, where his lectures won him the Kiekhofer Award as "best teacher" for his first year on campus. Subsequently, his tenure spanned more than thirty years.Risgord, 1974, p. 961
In 1966 Risjord was a visiting professor at Columbia University. Then, following the "Wisconsin Idea", in 1967 he began broadcasting his classroom lectures over NPR Wisconsin Public Radio, furthering the university's commitment to contribute to the education of every household in the state of Wisconsin. These continued periodically until 1989.
Risjord was awarded a Fulbright Lectureship at the university in Uppsala, Sweden in 1967–1968, an international academic award given to distinguished professors.Fulbright Scholar Directory 1967-1968, "Norman Risjord" He returned to teach American history at the University of Wisconsin–Madison until four years later, when he became a visiting lecturer at Dundee, Scotland, 1973 to 1974. Risjord served on the committee of the Southern Historical Association in 1974–1975, which oversaw the association's programs and new developments.Depauw University, History, February 1975,, news letter
In 1978 Risjord wrote his second research book, Chesapeake Politics, 1780-1800, a study of the evolution of political parties in Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina. In 1979, Risjord wrote a textbook on American History for use in secondary schools. In 1984 he wrote a college-level textbook titled America: A History of the United States published by Prentice Hall.
For the next decade, Risjord remained lecturing at the Madison campus, until he was again the recipient of a Fulbright Scholar Lectureship, this time to Singapore in 1983–1984.Fulbright Scholar Directory 1983-1984, "Norman Risjord" On his return to Wisconsin, Risjord taught for five consecutive years until a year spent as visiting lecturer as a professor of history at the U.S. Naval Academy between 1989 and 1990. During much of his tenure at Wisconsin University he was a member its department of history.The William and Mary Quarterly, Oct. 1992, p. 628 He taught a final three years on the Madison campus to finish out his 30-year career before retiring from university lecturing. Risjord retired from Wisconsin University in 1993, with the title Professor Emeritus of History.Wisconsin Department of History, news letter, 2019, p. 30 In retirement, Risjord continued to write history, while applying his teaching and academic skills to volunteer work under PLATO (Participatory Learning and Teaching Organization). He continued in that role for more than two decades, until several months before his death. His teaching career lasted more than 60 years.PLATO: Essay for RisjordUniversity of Virginia Magazine, Fall, 1960
Academia
Risjord's studies into on the early American party system were extensive and his subsequent works are often noted. Historian Donald R. Hickey notes that his writings about the Republicans in Early American political history are considered standard works on the subject. Risjord's works in this area include, The Old Republicans (1965), also considered a standard work on the early Republicans,Hickey, 1989, p. 333 Southern Conservatism in the Age of Jefferson (1965); The Virginia Federalists (1967);Risjord, 1967, pp. 486-517 Early American Party System (1969); The Evolution of Political Parties in Virginia, 1782-1800 (1974).Risjord, 1974, pp. 961–984 Hickey maintains that the best study of the 1812 United States presidential election is Risjord's "Election of 1812."Risjord, 1965, title pageRosjord, 1969, title page
Risjord's writings over the years have appeared in several major historical journals, including The American Historical Review, Political Science Quarterly, the William and Mary Quarterly and The Journal of American History.
Post university life
Risjord's teaching career lasted a total of 60 years. Upon his retirement he began writing books on US history for general readers. His first works were biographical studies that grew out of a course he taught at the university, "Representative Americans". The work evolved into six volumes, covering the biographies from the Colonial Period to the twentieth century. After that, he took an interest in the history of the upper Midwest, publishing the histories of Wisconsin, Minnesota, the Dakotas, and Lake Superior. Risjord had written over twenty books on American History before he died on January 31, 2019.Gunderson, biography and obituary
After his retirement in 1993, Risjord taught as a volunteer instructor for Wisconsin University-affiliated PLATO (Participatory Learning and Teaching Organization), part of the Division of Continuing Studies of the University of Wisconsin–Madison, and is dedicated to promote self-directed learning for Madison residents nearing retirement. His first classes were in a classroom holding 20 students, then he attracted more students to fill the lecture hall at Madison Senior Center, Capitol Lakes, and finally he filled the 200-seat Oakwood Village West auditorium.Stevens, "A Leisurely Walk"
Risjord was survived by his wife, Connie, his brother, John and his son, Mark.
Works During his academic career Risjord had written over 26 books, numerous essays in historical journals, along with many reviews of books by notable historians in American history. (Listed below)
Historical focus and views In Risjord's 1812: Conservatives, War Hawks, and the Nation's Honor, he maintains that the issues leading up to the declaration of war in 1812 were "primarily concerned with the honor and integrity of the nation", than with issues concerning economics or the Canadian border.Risjord, 1961, p. 196
Several works are devoted to Virginia's role during the years leading up to the ratification of the Constitution in 1789, including, "Virginians and the Constitution: A Multivariant Analysis", and, "Chesapeake Politics", and, "The Evolution of Political Parties in Virginia". Risjord asserts the general theme that differences between Federalists and Republicans were not over matters of class and wealth, that sectionalism and partisanship played a major role. He also places emphasis on the influence of the enormous post war debts, foreign and domestic, owed by the United States. Risjord maintains that this was a national issue that weighed on both parties equally, and was the subject of three Congressional role calls in 1783–1784.Risjord, 1974, pp. 613-614Risjord, 1978, pp. 137, 293-297
COLONIAL AND EARLY AMERICAN HISTORY
1812: Conservatives, War Hawks, and the Nation's Honor by Norman K. Risjord, Bobbs-Merrill Publishers 1961 (reprint series) Builders of Annapolis: Enterprise and Politics in a Colonial Capital (1969, 1997) Maryland Historical Society The Old Republicans: Southern conservatism in the age of Jefferson (1965) Columbia University Press The Virginia Federalists (1967) The Early American Party System (1969, 1970) Harper & Row Crisis: Courts and Politics in the Young Republic (1971) Forging The American Republic, 1760-1815 – January 1, 1973 Addison Books A history of the United States to 1877, Risjord, Haywoode, Holt, 1983 Chesapeake Politics 1781–1800 (1978) Columbia University Press Thomas Jefferson (American Profiles Series) (1994) Rowman & Littlefield Jefferson's America, 1760–1815 Third Edition 2009. Madison House Publishers Election of 1812 (2019)
AMERICAN SOCIAL HISTORY
Mary Boykin Chesnut: A Confederate Woman's Life (American Profiles Series) 1998 by Maryu A. DeCredico, Norman K. Risjord
Representative Americans Series (Rowman & Littlefield Publishers): The Romantics (2001) The Colonists (2001, 2002) The Revolutionary Generation (2001) The Civil War Generation (2002) Populists and Progressives (2004) Giants in their Time: Representative Americans from the Jazz Age to the Cold War (2005)
GENERAL AMERICAN HISTORY WORKS
People and Our Country by Norman K. Risjord and Terry L. Haywoode, January 1, 1978. Holt, Rinehart and Winston America: A History of the United States (1979, 1988) vol. 1 & 2. Pearson Press, College Division America: The Glorious Republic (1987) Insights on American History vol. 1 & 2 (1988) Harcourt College Publications
LOCAL HISTORY Wisconsin: The Story of the Badger State (1995) Trails Media Group A Popular History of Minnesota (2005, 2009) Minnesota Historical Society Press Shining Big Sea Water: The Story of Lake Superior (2008) Dakota: The Story of the Northern Plains (2013) University of North Dakota Press
List of journal articles (partial)
"The Virginia Federalists" (1967) Southern Historical Association "The Evolution of Political Parties in Virginia, 1782-1800" with Gordon Denboer (1974) Journal of American History The Evolution of Political Parties in Virginia, 1782–1800, Norman K. Risjord, Gordon DenBoer, The Journal of American History, Vol. 60, No. 4 (Mar. 1974), pp. 961–984
The Compromise of 1790: New Evidence on the Dinner Table Bargain, Norman K. Risjord, The William and Mary Quarterly, Vol. 33, No. 2 (Apr. 1976), pp. 309–314
Jean Nicolet's Search for the South Sea, Norman K. Risjord, The Wisconsin Magazine of History, Vol. 84, No. 3 (Spring, 2001), pp. 34–43 James Anderson: Infantryman in Blue, Norman K. Risjord, The Wisconsin Magazine of History, Vol. 87, No. 4 (Summer, 2004), pp. 36–49 Big Game on the South Side: A Milwaukee Baseball Mystery Decoded, Norman K. Risjord, The Wisconsin Magazine of History, Vol. 88, No. 3 (Spring, 2005), pp. 28–39
Reviews in scholarly journals Norman K. Risjord published reviews in scholarly journals, and these attest to his scholarly standing in his field for over forty years of active academic life: