Louis Gottschalk, the historian and authority on the French Revolution, who led the B’nai B’rith Hillel Foundations during the turbulent 1960s-period of Jewish student involvement in the civil rights and social justice movements, died yesterday in Chicago. He was 76.
Dr. Gottschalk, who was born in Brooklyn, taught at the University of Chicago from 1925 until his retirement in 1964. He was chairman of the history department from 1925-1952. He was made a Chevalier in the Legion of Honor by the French government in 1953. Dr. Gottschalk served for six years as chairman of Hillel’s governing commission after his appointment in 1963. Before that he had been faculty advisor to the Hillel Foundation at the University of Chicago and was a member of the governing commission since 1959. He helped develop Hillel’s internationalization and pioneered the national faculty program that encouraged a scholarly examination of Jewish life and thought. A memorial service will be held this fall on the University of Chicago campus.
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