professor, sociologist, author, b. Virden, III. He graduated from Coe College, Cedar Rapids, Iowa (B.A., 1886), taught school in Fort Dodge, Iowa, studied at the Univ. of Berlin (1888-1889), and graduated from Johns Hopkins Univ. (Ph.D., 1891). He was professor of economics and political economy at Indiana Univ. (1891) and at Cornell Univ. (1892-1893). In 1893 he was appointed professor of sociology at Stanford Univ., holding this position until 1900, when his views on Chinese and Japanese immigration conflicted with those held by Mrs. Leland Stanford, founder of the university, and he was forced to resign at the close of the 1900-1901 academic year. This celebrated "academic freedom" case was picked up by the newspapers and periodicals, and brought Ross into national prominence. He was professor of sociology at the Univ. of Nebraska (1901-1906), and in 1906 was brought to the Univ. of Wisconsin by Richard T. Ely (q.v.) to head the newly formed department of sociology. Ross served in this capacity from 1906 until his retirement in 1937, and for many years was recognized as one of the nation's foremost sociologists. An active participant in many of the movements of his day, Ross was frequently involved in controversy at the Univ. of Wisconsin, one of the most celebrated incidents being his defense of anarchist Emma Goldman's right to speak at the university (1910). He was a lucid and forceful writer, and as a sociologist was given to specific, penetrating descriptions of social forces and problems rather than the development of sociological systems. Among his most important books were Social Control (1901), The Foundations of Society (1905), and Sin and Society (1907), the latter a book that was both influenced by, and had a significant influence on, the progressive, reforming, spirit of its day. Ross also traveled extensively and wrote several books based on his observations of social conditions in foreign countries. He was president of the American Sociology Society (1914-1915) and an advisory editor of the American Journal of Sociology (1915-1951). After retiring, he continued to make his home in Madison until his death. Who's Who in Amer., 25 (1948); E. A. Ross, 70 Years of It (New York, 1936); M. Curti and V. Carstensen, Univ. of Wis. (2 vols., Madison, 1949); Madison Wis. State Journal, July 23, 1951; E. A. Ross Papers.

The Wisconsin Historical Society has manuscripts related to this topic. See the catalog description of the Edward Alsworth Ross Papers for details. See also the Edward Alsworth Ross Letters.

View a related article at Wisconsin Magazine of History Archives.

View newspaper clippings at Wisconsin Local History and Biography Articles.

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[Source: Dictionary of Wisconsin biography]