Butler, Nicholas Murray

Butler, Nicholas Murray

(1862–1947) educator; born in Elizabeth, N.J. He graduated from Columbia University and then returned to teach there in 1885. He became a professor of philosophy and education (1895) and then president of the university (1902–45). During his long tenure, he abolished intercollegiate football at Columbia, was active in Republican politics (he advised both Theodore Roosevelt and Howard Taft and sought the 1920 presidential nomination), and made Columbia preeminent in graduate education. He was president of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (1925–45). He was influential in the creation of the Kellogg-Briand Pact for which he shared the 1931 Nobel Peace Prize (with Jane Addams). Because of his many accomplishments he came to be known as "Nicholas Miraculous."

The Cambridge Dictionary of American Biography, by John S. Bowman. Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1995. Reproduced with permission.