Collection: Robert Stein Papers | Georgetown University Archival Resources

Scope and Contents

The Robert Stein papers contain correspondence, leaflets, pamphlets, transcripts, and questionnaires. The first part of the papers pertains to International Peace and this is in folders 1 through 9. The rest of the collection is about phonetics and spelling reform. Most of Stein's correspondence is to him and there is correspondence to John R. Connelly, William Schley Howard, and James Geddes, Jr. Note: Click on "External Documents" below for a link to the finding aid for the collection.

Dates

1893 - 1917

Conditions Governing Access

Most manuscripts collections at the Georgetown University Booth Family Center for Special Collections are open to researchers; however, restrictions may apply to some collections. Collections stored off site require a minimum of three days for retrieval. For use of all manuscripts collections, researchers are advised to contact the Booth Family Center for Special Collections in advance of any visit.

Biographical Notes

Robert Stein was born in Silesia, Prussia, on January 9, 1857. He began teaching after he came to the United States in 1875 and he received an M.D. degree in 1886 from Georgetown College. He was a translator for the U.S. Geological Survey and was well known for his Arctic explorations. He explored Ellesmereland and his plan for this exploration received the attention of American and European geographers. He was on one of Admiral Peary's expeditions to western Greenland and spent two years teaching the Eskimos linguistics on Ellesmereland. Mr. Stein wrote about his work in the Arctic and on other subjects including international peace. He was also employed at the Bureau of Statistics in the Department of Agriculture. He collaborated with James Geddes, Jr. on phonetics reform and in particular on an International Phonetic Conference. They advocated a universal alphabet and a simplified spelling method. Mr. Stein died in 1917. James Geddes, Jr., born in 1858, was a professor of Romance Languages at Boston University from 1887 to 1937. A member of many language and educational societies, he was on the Simplified Spelling Board. He was the editor of French, Spanish and Italian text books and the author of several French language books. Mr. Geddes wrote articles on the Romance languages, in particular, the Canadian and Acadian French dialects, and on Italian and Spanish subjects for the Encyclopedia Americana. Mr. Geddes died in 1948.