Biographical Note
David Lovett was born in Baltimore, Maryland, on November 5, 1907,
into a working-class Jewish family. He attended public schools public schools
and was the first in his family to attend college. He graduated from The Johns
Hopkins University with a bachelor's degree in 1927 and a PhD in English in
1932.
In his mid twenties, Lovett began suffering from an illness that was
later diagnosed as Parkinson's disease. In spite of his failing health, Lovett
pursued his academic vocation and joined the Whitman College English faculty in
1936. When he arrived in Walla Walla, Lovett was surprised to discover that he
was the only Jew among the faculty and students. Nevertheless, Lovett thrived
and immensely enjoyed his time at Whitman.
After two years, due to declining health, Lovett left Whitman and
returned east. He was not able to work regularly and became a resident of the
Levindale Hebrew Home and Infirmary, where in 1947 he started a literary
periodical, "The Voice of Levindale." Lovett died in January 1950.
Content Description
The papers of David Lovett include Lovett's unpublished literary
manuscripts; his published dissertation and the first two issues of "The Voice
of Levindale"; photographs; correspondence; newspaper clippings; student's
recollections of Lovett; and a booklet titled "The David Lovett Collection,"
with an introductory biographical essay by David Kairys. Also included in
Lovett's papers are some of his books on teaching English.