Remembering David McCullough

The Life and Work of a Celebrated Historian

The past after all is only another name for someone else's present.

Award-winning historian David McCullough passed away on August 7 at 89 years old. The author earned tremendous renown for his bestselling books on history and his skill as a television host and narrator. He won Pulitzer Prizes for two presidential biographies, Truman and John Adams. He received National Book Awards for The Path Between the Seas: The Creation of the Panama Canal and Mornings on Horseback, a book about Theodore Roosevelt's early life.

Early Life and Education

I just thank my father and mother, my lucky stars, that I had the advantage of an education in the humanities.

David McCullough was born in Pittsburgh on July 7, 1933, one of four sons to Ruth and Christian McCullough. He described his childhood as "marvelous" with a wide range of interests including sports and drawing cartoons. His parents and grandmother introduced him to books early and his family often discussed history—qualities he later recounted with appreciation.

In 1951 he enrolled at Yale. He reported being inspired by esteemed faculty members like Robert Penn Warren, John O'Hara, and John Hersey. He described being influenced by lunchtime conversations with Thornton Wilder, going into detail about the specific ways in which his writing was informed by discussions with the novelist-playwright.

History as an Art Form

No harm's done to history by making it something someone would want to read.

After his first book, The Johnstown Flood, was met with high praise from critics, McCullough, with encouragement from his wife Rosalee, decided to become a full-time writer. Over the years, critics hailed his meticulous research and his ability to bring history to life. In a 2008 documentary about the author, he said of his writing, "I don't want it just to be readable. I don't want it just to be interesting. I want it to be something that moves the reader. Moves me."

Like a method actor, he worked to inhabit the characters he wrote about. He grew a beard like the engineer Washington Roebling while writing The Great Bridge, a book about the construction of the Brooklyn Bridge. While working on Truman, he adopted the former president's habit of taking brisk early morning walks.

Along with the titles we've already mentioned, McCullough's popular titles include:

• 1776—The stirring story of the year of America's birth, interweaving the actions and decisions on both sides of the Atlantic that led to war.
• The Wright Brothers—Get to know Wilbur and Orville Wright, the two Ohio boys who taught the world how to fly.
• Brave Companions: Portraits in History—Insightful essays about people who changed history, including Harriet Beecher Stowe, Frederic Remington, Louis Agassiz, Charles Lindbergh, Anne Morrow Lindbergh, and others.

Beyond the Books

You can't be a full participant in our democracy if you don't know our history.

Several of McCullough's books have been adapted for the screen including Truman, which was made into an HBO film starring Gary Sinise. John Adams, a miniseries (also from HBO) starring Paul Giamatti was based on McCullough's book of the same name.

McCullough himself became a bit of a screen star. He was a natural as a narrator for history programs and was tapped to host the PBS television series American Experience from 1988 to 1999. He narrated the 1990 Ken Burns series, The Civil War, as well as the 2003 film Seabiscuit. Listeners found his voice calming and clear, as he broke down complex historical situations. "Incredibly, you don't want him to shut up," wrote blogger-journalist Gary North.

Family Life and Legacy

History is a guide to navigation in perilous times. History is who we are and why we are the way we are.

McCullough and his wife Rosalee met at a dance in Pittsburgh when they were both still teenagers. They were married in 1954 and stayed together until her death earlier this summer on June 9. Together the couple raised five children.

McCullough was the recipient of awards from many historical societies and upwards of 40 honorary doctorates. In 2006, he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom. In a 2003 speech for the National Endowment for the Humanities, he said, "The reward of the work has always been the work itself, and more so the longer I've been at it. The days are never long enough, and I've kept the most interesting company imaginable with people long gone."

Read more by Ashly Moore Sheldon