(1902–98), U.S. historian. Beginning in the 1930s, Henry Steele Commager wrote influential works on the nature of democracy and the American mind. Born in Pittsburgh, Pa., he was the coauthor of ‘Growth of the American Republic' (1930) and also wrote ‘The American Mind' (1950), ‘Freedom, Loyalty, Dissent' (1954), ‘Nature and Problems of History' (1965), and ‘Search for a Usable Past' (1967). His works for younger readers included ‘America's Robert E. Lee', ‘The First Book of American History', ‘The Great Declaration', ‘The Great Proclamation', ‘The Constitution', and ‘Crusaders for Freedom'. In addition to writing, he taught at New York University from 1926 to 1938, at Columbia University from 1938 to 1956, and at Amherst College from 1956 until his retirement in 1972. He was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Letters in 1970. (See also History.)