Some of the Least Explored Resources: Dissertations and Theses on the Subject of Baseball (1908–2024)

INTRODUCTION

When I was browsing old issues of the SABR Review of Books, one article from 1988 caught my attention.1 An article by Peter Bjarkman suggested that academic dissertations have much to offer baseball researchers, and he commented that these works “provide a fruitful scholarly resource.”2 He also noted that dissertations “remain one of the richest resources for scholarly interpretation of baseball, and yet at the same time one of the least explored sources.” This makes sense, as authors of dissertations and theses often dedicate years to study an issue in depth, but the final product is typically only seen by a few readers, even though many are available online or archived in libraries.

In his annotated bibliography, Bjarkman highlighted 19 doctoral student projects from 1939 to 1987, specifically on the intersection of baseball and American Literature. I began to wonder, how many more dissertations have been written about baseball since 1987? What topics are covered? Beyond literature, what subjects or fields of study are represented? To date, there has been no comprehensive study or bibliography of research produced by graduate students on the topic of baseball. Those questions, and my curiosity, led to an in-depth investigation.

This paper provides an overview of dissertations and theses completed between 1908 and 2024, along with a link to a separate bibliography document and a data file listing details for over 850 research papers. While the full bibliography is published online at sabr.org, this article serves as an important preview providing additional information and context. You are invited and encouraged to explore this collection. Both well-seasoned baseball researchers and more casual fans will likely discover something to help them think about and understand the game in a new way.

THE SEARCH FOR BASEBALL DISSERTATIONS AND THESES

The search began by examining the major bibliographies on the subject of baseball that provide lists of books, articles, and other publications. A small number of dissertations and theses can be discovered using these research tools, but they are a relatively rare occurrence. The following sources were reviewed closely: The Baseball File: A Comprehensive Bibliography of America’s National Pastime; Baseball and American Culture: A Thematic Bibliography of Over 4,500 works; and Guide to Baseball Literature.3,4,5 By far, the largest work of this type is Myron Smith’s Baseball: A Comprehensive Bibliography, first published in 1986 and later followed up with a second edition consisting of four volumes and over 57,000 entries.6,7 Finally, SABR’s current database of baseball publications The Baseball Index includes more than 275,000 entries.8

Because very few dissertations were located in the sources above, a more precise solution was required to expand the search further. The primary data source used for this project was ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global. This database, available at many academic and research libraries, is described as “the world’s most comprehensive curated collection of multi-disciplinary dissertations and theses” and contains over five million works from over 3,000 institutions.9 EBSCO’s Open Dissertations database provided further leads while WorldCat and numerous university library online catalogs helped to verify information such as titles, authors, and dates.10,11

A LOOK AT THE NUMBERS

After carefully reviewing the sources above, 864 student research papers were ultimately selected for inclusion in this analysis and bibliography. These include doctoral dissertations, master’s theses, and a few papers from undergraduate students (such as a senior thesis or honors project). The research papers were produced between 1908 and 2024, primarily in the United States, and have some aspect of baseball as a central or key theme (see Table 1, Table 2, and Figure 1 below). The projects selected do not represent every baseball dissertation or thesis ever written but instead highlight those that could be located and the ones determined to be of most interest to baseball researchers.

While the focus is largely on professional baseball, college baseball is also represented. This analysis and bibliography excludes most studies about high school and youth baseball, as well as projects that mention baseball in passing but are not centered on baseball. Also excluded are the numerous dissertations and theses discussing very specific aspects of baseball-related injuries, physiology, body movements, range of motion, muscles, and similar issues. Researchers interested in these topics are in most cases better served by examining more current literature, such as studies published in academic journals. Many of these studies can be located by searching PubMed, the citation database maintained by the National Library of Medicine.12 In addition, many academic research studies about baseball appearing in scholarly journals cover a variety of other topics like economics, physics, history, and more, but those are beyond the scope of this investigation.

 

 

 

While we know that baseball can be studied and analyzed in countless ways, the data here emphasize this fact even further with hundreds of students choosing to engage in deep research about baseball on their way toward earning an advanced degree. Just over half of the items identified were completed as part of a master’s degree while doctoral dissertations make up most of the remainder, along with a small number of bachelor’s degree projects. It is not surprising to see more master’s theses because the overall number of individuals earning a master’s degree in the United States is much higher than those completing a doctoral degree (Figure 2). If the number of master’s degree earners is so much higher than doctoral students, why don’t we see many more theses about baseball? That is a good question and some possible explanations include that not all master’s students are required to complete and formally submit a thesis, and when these are completed, many remain unpublished or excluded from libraries and other research collections.

 

 

Some of the earliest and most interesting student works on baseball came from the International Young Men’s Christian Association Training School in Massachusetts, now known as Springfield College.14 This institution granted degrees primarily in physical education and had students complete a thesis as a graduation requirement. Many of the student papers have been digitized by the college and are available to view online. The oldest student research paper located on the subject of baseball was “A History of College Baseball” by Joseph Johnson in 1908. Other interesting titles from this school include “Smoking and its Effects Upon Base Ball Pitching” by William Lang in 1916.15 A few years later, in 1922, John McCarraher wrote “A Study of Defensive Baseball,” while in the same year William Diemer wrote “A Study of Offensive Baseball.”16,17 This pair of fascinating surveys asked about baseball practices, perspectives, and opinions, and captured responses from names like Ty Cobb, Tris Speaker, Honus Wagner, Ira Plank, Pat Moran and other prominent players and coaches. Dozens of questions sought to learn more about strategies such as:

• Is it easier to steal third than to steal second?
• Do you consider bunting a very important part of the game?
• Do you have your catcher back up first base on a ground ball with no outs?

These studies by McCarraher and Diemer are definitely worth a look. The links can be found in the notes at the end of the paper.

UNIVERSITIES AND ACADEMIC DISCIPLINES REPRESENTED

The 864 theses and dissertations appearing in the bibliography that accompanies this article represent 295 colleges and universities, with Ohio State University producing the most (18). Other top schools include Clemson University, Arizona State University, and University of Texas at Austin (Table 3).

 

 

The scholarly study of baseball includes nearly all academic disciplines as the sport can be studied from many different perspectives; it is a true interdisciplinary subject, and any field of study can find something to investigate. For this analysis, academic departments were grouped into broad categories since schools use variations in this terminology (Table 4). For a number of research papers, especially older projects, the department or subject area could not be determined. Of the ones that could be identified, the greatest number of papers about baseball were completed by students pursuing degrees in physical education, including the related fields of kinesiology and exercise science. History was the second largest discipline represented, and the fields of education, business, and communication also appear quite frequently. 

 

ACCESSING THE FULL BIBLIOGRAPHY AND DATA FILES

The full bibliography (PDF) listing all 864 dissertations and theses, from 1908–2024, will be made available soon. The 73-page document is sorted by category and includes a table of contents and author index. A link to the full data file (spreadsheet) will also be made available so researchers may analyze the content and perform custom sorting and searching.

All of the dissertations and theses are also now included in the Baseball Index (baseballindex.org), SABR’s bibliography of baseball literature, which previously only included a few of these works. Use the Advanced Search to filter by document type, then select Dissertation.

 

Figure 3. Frequency of Dissertations and Theses by Topic

 

SPECIFIC BASEBALL TOPICS COVERED BY RESEARCHERS

The range of specific topics investigated is quite broad. Each dissertation or thesis was assigned to one of the 25 categories listed in Figure 3. Some research papers cover more than one topic area or could arguably be assigned to a different category, but the topic categories assigned represent a best attempt to choose the one that best describes the dissertations and theses observed.

Below is a brief description of each category and a sample of selected works that stood out to me as interesting, notable, or just fun, to provide a preview and a sample of what you will find in the full bibliography.

The most popular topic chosen by graduate students to study is related to the Business of Baseball. The 93 research projects in this category look at various aspects of the game such as attendance, revenue, salaries, free-agency, contracts, marketing, revenue, the economic impacts of baseball, as well as the role of management, executives, and owners. This category includes works about the impact of jumbotron advertising, dynamic ticket pricing, and promotions in minor league baseball.18,19,20

The next most frequent topic related to specific Cities, Regions, Leagues, or Teams. This category is further broken down by state to help readers quickly find coverage of their favorite team or local area. Here you will find 89 in-depth studies on topics such as the Arkansas State League in the 1930s, the relocation of the Montreal Expos, the economic impact of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons, and a survey of Sioux Falls Canaries season ticket holders.21,22,23,24

As one might imagine, the History of Baseball is an important and popular area of study. Among the 65 studies are a series of interviews with six baseball historians and a detailed history of the All-Star Game.25,26 This category also includes interesting works such as the 1939 “Historical Dictionary of Baseball Terminology,” and Harold Seymour’s 1956 dissertation that eventually led to his highly regarded and award-winning book, Baseball: The Early Years.27,28,29 At least five other studies in this category, in addition to Seymour’s, went on to be further developed and published as books.

It is also no surprise that research would be conducted on the many Strategies, Techniques, and Skills of the game. The 54 projects here look at questions such as the best method for rounding first base, predicting pitches based on pitch tipping, and a statistical analysis of retaliation pitches.30,31,32 Quite a few students chose to investigate baseball’s intersection with Art, Music, Literature, or Film. Numerous studies focus on how the sport is represented in specific works of fiction or film. One example is “Baseball fiction in children’s periodicals 1880–1950.”33 When it comes to music you can read about how modern players experience stadium music during a game, or a more historical perspective in “From the Hammond Organ to Sweet Caroline.”34,35

Many entries in the Math and Statistics section deal with quantitative analysis and predictions, while the Biological and Medical studies report on aspects of injuries and body movements, including several studies on the importance of vision. As noted earlier, this bibliography includes only a limited selection of titles in this category as this research is constantly evolving and frequently appears in other academic and professional publications. The Media section contains all things related to newspapers, television, radio, and online communication. One project surveyed play-by-play announcers in the 1970s, another analyzed newspaper coverage of the steroid issue, and yet another presents the history and creation of a regional sports network (NESN).36,37,38 Dissertations and theses about player personalities and the unique stressors of baseball, such as the yips (a sudden and unexplained loss of physical skills), are covered in Psychology and Mental Health.

Many questions exist around the materials used to manufacture bats and balls, and their performance. These questions are addressed in the Science/Physics/Equipment section. Studies here also include the movement of pitches, like the curveball or knuckleball, or even the properties and impacts of the dirt and grass on the playing field. The Minor Leagues receive a fair amount of attention with research focused on topics related to business aspects, or a team’s role in the community. One student used his experience as a mascot for a minor league ball team to develop a dissertation when earning a degree in communications.39 For students interested in Ballparks/Stadiums, the work in that category studied construction, financing, and unique aspects or features of stadiums, including historical preservation and economic impacts on surrounding communities.

The Black Baseball/Negro Leagues category examines influential individuals (e.g., Wendell Smith), teams (e.g., Ethiopian Clowns), and representation in the media (e.g., Pittsburgh Courier).40,41,42 This category also covers segregation and integration from a historical context and a variety of angles. Of the 33 projects here, only four were completed before 1980.

As interest in baseball increases around the world, so does the academic research. Studies in the International Baseball category include details about fans and players in places including Canada, Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea, while those in the section on Hispanic and Latin American Baseball report on issues and players from the Dominican Republic, Cuba, Puerto Rico, and Mexico.

While this overall project excludes many works about little league and high school baseball, the College and Youth Baseball category covers some interesting and important topics such as Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) opportunities in college baseball, the history of the American Legion youth baseball program, the Little League Challenger Division, and more.43,44,45

The role of Women and Baseball is a significant aspect through all eras and continues to interest researchers. The two earliest projects on this topic, one in 1954 and one in 1976, focused on the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League.46,47 No others could be found until five more were completed in the 1990s. Interest continued to grow with another 14 published between 2006 and 2017. These research papers have investigated among other issues, women in leadership in professional baseball, and the experiences of female major league baseball fans.48,49

Some of the most interesting and unexpected research projects appear in the section Creative Works and Original Compositions. These students chose to use baseball as the inspiration for their original novels, screenplays, or even musical works. For example, a 2013 dissertation from the University of Chicago Department of Music used the Astros-Cubs game from May 6, 1998, as the basis for a string quartet composition.50 This is the game in which Kerry Wood recorded 20 strikeouts to tie the major league record for most strikeouts in nine innings.

Topics such as post-retirement life and issues impacting families of baseball players are found in the Families, Personal Life, and Relationships section. Umpires are another key aspect of the game to be studied in detail. Researchers have written about automated strike zones, umpire performance, and umpire personalities. Rule changes over the years and discussions of rules violations, including performance enhancing substances, are covered in Rules/Policies.

The remaining categories contain fewer than ten dissertations or theses each. While these topics are covered less frequently, they are still worthy of consideration and include some interesting coverage about Coaches and Managers and the Hall of Fame. The Memorabilia and Collecting category primarily covers baseball cards, but there is one lengthy study detailing depictions of sports on postage stamps.51 Finally, Fantasy Baseball represents the smallest category with only four projects completed between 1997 and 2021.

HOW TO OBTAIN A COPY OF A DISSERTATION OR THESES FROM THE BIBLIOGRAPHY

When you locate one or more items in the accompanying bibliography that you would like to explore more thoroughly, the full papers may be accessed in several ways.

• Direct Link: In many cases, especially for dissertations and theses published in the most recent decades, a digital copy is available directly from the associated college or university website, often through the institution’s library. Where digital copies are available the link is provided.
• Contact the Originating University/Library: An archival copy is typically held at the library of the institution where a dissertation or thesis was produced. This may be in print or on microfilm. Check the library’s online catalog or contact staff for assistance.
• Your Local Library: Many academic libraries subscribe to the ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global database to search and obtain digital copies of many of these documents. Access policies for visitors vary. Contact library staff for details.

Copies of some dissertations and theses may be found at multiple college or university libraries, not just the one where the author completed the degree.

Your local public or academic library may be able to initiate an interlibrary loan request on your behalf to obtain a copy from another library.

Digital or print copies for many titles are available to purchase from ProQuest.

FINAL THOUGHTS

The most enjoyable aspect of this project was seeing the vast range of topics that one can study in relation to baseball. To see so many fans successfully combine their love of the game with their academic and professional pursuits is truly remarkable. Even though many of the dissertations and theses identified are quite old at this point, they still hold value for today’s researchers investigating aspects of the national pastime. Some of the identified dissertation and thesis authors likely went on to pursue careers in or around baseball, while others may have followed a different path. However, there is a strong probability their passion for baseball remains with many. Some went on to develop their academic work into books or articles, and these cases are noted in the bibliography. Seven individuals completed both a master’s thesis and a doctoral dissertation about baseball.

Future researchers and graduate students may find the projects in this bibliography helpful when considering a baseball related topic for their own project. What has been covered before? Where are the gaps waiting to be filled? The reference lists found in these dissertations and theses are also a valuable tool for future researchers, saving significant time and leading to sources that may otherwise be missed.

Because baseball dissertations and theses remain some of the least explored resources, this collection provides a rich resource to browse and discover something new in your specific area(s) of interest, or perhaps to even develop a new area of interest. It is this author’s hope that going forward these important works become more visible and accessible to all baseball fans and researchers.

TOM REINSFELDER holds the title of Distinguished Librarian at Penn State University where he enjoys assisting researchers and learning something new every day. He joined SABR in 2022 and has made contributions as an editor and fact checker for the BioProject and as a peer reviewer for Baseball Research Journal. Some personal baseball highlights include attending the last game at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore and traveling to the Midnight Sun Game in Fairbanks Alaska with his father and son.

 

Acknowledgments

The author received helpful assistance from Jeffrey L. Monseau, College Archivist, and Mackenzie Dunn, Assistant Director for Research and Access at the Springfield College library.

 

Notes

1.  SABR Review of Books, https://sabr.org/journals/sabr-review-of-books/.

2.  Peter C. Bjarkman, “Bats, Balls, and Gowns: Academic Dissertations on Baseball Literature, Culture and History,” SABR Review of Books 3 (1988): 89–104 https://sabr.org/journals/sabr-review-of-books/. https://sabr.org/journal/article/dissertations-on-the-subject-of-baseball.

3. Marion Fournier, The Baseball File: A Comprehensive Bibliography of America’s National Pastime (Sport Information Resource Centre, 1992).

4. Donald E. Walker and B. Lee Cooper, Baseball and American Culture: A Thematic Bibliography of Over 4,500 Works (McFarland, 1995).

5. Anton Grobani, Guide to Baseball Literature (Gale, 1975).

6. Myron J. Smith Jr, Baseball: A Comprehensive Bibliography (McFarland, 1986). Supplement 1 published in 1993. Supplement 2 published in 1998.

7. Myron J. Smith Jr, The Baseball Bibliography, 2nd ed. (McFarland, 2006).

8. “The Baseball Index,” Society for American Baseball Research, https://baseballindex.org.

9. “ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global,” Proquest, https://about.proquest.com/en/products-services/pqdtglobal.

10. “EBSCO Open Dissertations,” https://www.ebsco.com/products/research-databases/ebsco-open-dissertations.

11. “What is WorldCat.org?” OCLC, https://search.worldcat.org/about.

12. “PubMed” National Library of Medicine, http://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov.

13. “Degrees Conferred by Postsecondary Institutions, By Level of Degree and Sex of Student: Selected Academic Years, 1869–70 Through 2031–32” Digest of Education Statistics, National Center for Education Statistics, 2023, Table 318.10, https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d23/tables/dt23_318.10.asp.

14. From 1912-–54 the school was named “International Young Men’s Christian Association College” https://library.springfield.edu/college-history/timeline-of-college-history.

15. William A. Lang, “Smoking and Its Effects Upon Base Ball Pitching” (Springfield College, 1916), https://cdm16122.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16122coll1/id/282426.

16. John D. McCarraher, “A Study of Defensive Baseball” (Springfield College, 1922), https://cdm16122.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16122coll1/id/285732.

17. William S. Diemer, “A Study of Offensive Baseball” (Springfield College, 1922), https://cdm16122.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16122coll1/id/306814.

18. Trevor Kraus, “The Effect of Jumbotron Advertising on the Experience of Attending Major League Baseball Games” (master’s thes., University of Missouri–Columbia, 2014), https://hdl.handle.net/10355/45673.

19. Jian-Da Zhu, “Essays on Dynamic Ticket Pricing: Evidence from Major League Baseball Tickets” (PhD diss., Texas A&M University, 2014), https://hdl.handle.net/1969.1/153408.

20. Julie D. Lanzillo, “The Attitudes of Minor League Baseball Fans and Team Administrators Toward the Use of Promotions” (PhD diss., Wilmington University, 2010).

21. Jeffrey John Aulgur, “Depression Era Minor League Baseball: The Arkansas State League, 1934–1935” (master’s thes., University of Arkansas, 1991).

22. Peter F. Brandt, “Franchise Relocation in Professional Sports: The Case of the Montreal Expos” (master’s thes., University of New Orleans, 1999).

23. James J. Keeler, “The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons: A Case Study of Regional Community and Economic Development in Northeastern Pennsylvania” (PhD diss., University of Southern California, 1997). https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-c17-322604.

24. Scott F. Gales, “A Survey Investigation Involving the Season Ticket Holders of the Sioux Falls Canaries Baseball Club” (master’s thes., Minnesota State University, Mankato, 1997).

25. Wade Berstler, “Historians of 19th Century Baseball: Exploring Their Experiences Regarding Their Avocation” (PhD diss., Florida Atlantic University, 2016), https://fau.digital.flvc.org/islandora/object/fau%3A33738.

26. Herbert Cohen, “An Historical Study of the Baseball All-Star Game” (master’s thes., University of Southern California, 1957), https://impa.usc.edu/archive/An-historical-study-of-the-baseball-all-star-game–2A3BF16A38W3.html

27. Edward J. Nichols, “An Historical Dictionary of Baseball Terminology” (PhD diss., Penn State University, 1939).

28. Harold E. Seymour, “The Rise of Major League Baseball to 1891” (PhD diss., Cornell University, 1956).

29. John Thorn, “Henry Chadwick Award: Harold Seymour and Dorothy Seymour Mills,” SABR Baseball Research Journal 39, no. 2 (2010), https://sabr.org/journal/article/henry-chadwick-award-harold-seymour-and-dorothy-seymour-mills

30. Wayne S. Kaufman, “Comparison of Two Methods of Rounding First Base in Baseball” (master’s thes., Ohio State University, 1961).

31. Brian Ishii, “Using Pitch Tipping for Baseball Pitch Prediction” (master’s thes., California Polytechnic State University, 2021), https://digitalcommons.calpoly.edu/theses/2311

32. Peter Jurewicz, “Chin Music: A Statistical Analysis of Retaliation Pitches in Major League Baseball” (master’s thes., Clemson University, 2013), https://open.clemson.edu/all_theses/1793.

33. Debraren A. Dagavarian, “A Descriptive Analysis of Baseball Fiction in Children’s Periodicals, 1880–1950” (PhD diss., Rutger’s University, 1986).

34. Seth Swary, “Yo, I Like Your Walk-Up Song: Music Integration in Professional Baseball Gamedays” (PhD diss., West Virginia University, 2020), https://researchrepository.wvu.edu/etd/7677.

35. Matthew W. Mihalka, “From the Hammond Organ to ‘Sweet Caroline’: The Historical Evolution of Baseball’s Sonic Environment” (PhD diss., University of Minnesota, 2012).

36. Michael R. Emrick, “Major League Baseball principal Play-By-Play Announcers: Their Occupation, Background, and Personal Life” (PhD diss., Bowling Green State University, 1976), http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=bgsu1566302070900713.

37. Daniel G. Murphy, “Newspaper Coverage of Steroid Scandal: Steroids Pump Up Baseball’s Status Quo” (master’s thes., Fordham University, 2009).

38. Tanya L. Lovejoy, “Was anyone out there watching last night?”: The creation and early history of New England Sports Network, 1980–1989” (PhD diss., Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, 2012), https://opensiuc.lib.siu.edu/dissertations/546.

39. Jeffrey L. Birdsell, “Dogging It At Work: Developing and Performing Organizational Routines as a Minor League Baseball Mascot” (PhD diss., University of Texas at Austin, 2015), http://hdl.handle.net/2152/30522.

40. Hope Roth, “Wendell Smith and the integration of Major League Baseball” (master’s thes., Tufts University, 2013).

41. John Dominic T.M. Migliaccio, “All the world loves a clown: The humble beginnings, glorious peak, and slow death of the Ethiopian Clowns” (master’s thes., California State University–Fresno, 2020).

42. John Slights, “The romanticization of the integration of Major League Baseball and the decline of organized black professional baseball through the lens of the Pittsburgh Courier, 1945–1950” (master’s thes., University of Georgia, 2019).

43. Matthew Magre, “The Implications of NIL Collectives on College Baseball” (undergraduate thes., University of Arkansas, 2024), https://scholarworks.uark.edu/econuht/55.

44. Kent M. Krause, “From Americanism to Athleticism: A History of the American Legion Junior Baseball Program” (PhD diss., University of Nebraska–Lincoln, 1998).

45. Lupe D. Casteneda, “Perceived Outcomes of Participation in Challenger Division Baseball” (master’s thes., Texas Woman’s University, 1997).

46. Maria Sexton, “Implications of the All-American Girl Baseball League for physical educators in the guidance of highly-skilled girls” (PhD diss., Columbia University, 1954).

47. Fidler, Merrie, “The development and decline of the All-American Girls Baseball League, 1943–1954” (master’s thes., University of Massachusetts, Amherst).

48. Maki Itoh, “Role Models, Women’s Leadership and Careers of Women in the Management of Professional Baseball” (PhD diss., University of Louisville, 2014), https://ir.library.louisville.edu/etd/663.

49. Kelly L. Balfour, “Life in the Stands: The Experiences of Female Major League Baseball Fans” (PhD diss., University of Tennessee, 2012), https://trace.tennessee.edu/utk_graddiss/1264.

50. Alexander James Genik-Sas-Berezowsky, “May 6th, 1998, for String Quartet” (PhD diss., University of Chicago, 2013), https://catalog.lib.uchicago.edu/vufind/Record/9370384. Audio recording available at https://soundcloud.com/alex-j-berezowsky/may-6th-1998.

51. Myrtis E. Herndon, “The Sporting Spirit: Perceptions in Philatelic Art Iconography and Sports Philately, 1896–1974” (PhD diss., Ohio State University, 1991).