The economist George E. Barnett (b. 19 February 1873; d. 17 June 1938) was briefly glimpsed in the previous post as one of three colleagues who covered the undergraduate course offerings in economics at the Johns Hopkins University in 1919-20. Unlike many an economics professor who has gone on to relative obscurity, Barnett actually served a term as President of the American Economic Association (1932) that should have been sufficient to double the half-life of his afterlife. Barnett even served on an advisory committee for the director of the national census.
To partially fill in the historical blank, today’s post provides a local obituary that reported Barnett’s suicide, presumably related to a severe, chronic illness. Links to books mentioned in his obituary and a Johns Hopkins’ bibiliography up through 1913 have been included as well. Apparently a more complete bibliography was prepared in 1938.
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J.H.U. Teacher Dies of Wound; Had Been Ill
Dr. George E. Barnett Is Found In Apartment, Pistol Near By
Succumbs at Hospital. Was Expert on Labor Problems, Statistics
Dr. George Ernest Barnett, 65 years old, professor of statistics at the Johns Hopkins University and an international authority on labor problems, was found fatally wounded in the bathroom of his third-floor apartment at 827 Park avenue early today. A .38-caliber revolver lay on the floor near by.
An ambulance was summoned and he was taken to the Johns Hopkins Hospital, where he was pronounced dead a short time later.
Found by Friend
The wounded professor was found by a friend, Dr. Lucien Brun, a dentist with offices on the first floor of the apartment building, and the latter’s secretary. Dr. Brun told Sergt. Lawrence Stevens, Central district officer who investigated the case, that he knew Dr. Barnett had been ill for some time.
The dentist said when he heard a shot from upstairs he and his secretary rushed up to find Dr. Barnett slumped on the floor, a bullet wound in his temple.
Born in Cambridge, Md.
A native of Cambridge, Md., Dr. Barnett graduated from Randolph-Macon College in 1891 with his bachelor’s degree, and was presented with his doctorate by the Johns Hopkins University in 1902 [sic, 1901 appears correct] after teaching school for some years in North Carolina.
He served as instructor, associate and associate professor in economics from 1901 to 1911. Made a full professor in 1911, he has made a special study of labor problems since that time. His studies of labor in the Antipodes were undertaken because he felt the federation type of government in these two countries was so similar to that of the United States that such studies would be appropriate and helpful.
Member of Faculty 37 Years
Dr. Barnett had been a member of the Hopkins faculty for thirty-seven years and had lived for many years at the Park avenue address. His brilliant conversational abilities and his amiable personality had won him hundreds of friends among students, colleagues and a wide circle of Baltimoreans.
His specialization in the field of labor, unionism, arbitration and other labor problems had made him widely known as a scholar and led to his final assignment—a trip to New Zealand and Australia to study the labor arbitration court systems in use in the antipodes.
Granted a year’s leave of absence from the university, he went to New Zealand to begin his studies. He was stricken with a fever, however, and upon medical advice returned to Baltimore to undergo treatment. He remained at the Hopkins Hospital for a time, then moved back into his apartment.
His portly figure was a familiar one as he walked along North Charles street between his residence, the University Club, and the Johns Hopkins University. For many years it was his custom to walk the distance daily, often stopping to talk to a wide range of acquaintances.
Active in Club’s Affairs
For many years, too, he had been a member of the University Club, having his meals there and taking an active part in the affairs of the club.
He was a member of the Hopkins Faculty Club, and the Academic Council of the university.
Dr. Barnett is survived by two brothers, D’Arcy Barnett, of Caldwell, N. J., and Charles Barnett, of Cambridge, Md.
A member of the American Economic Association, the American Statistical Association and the American Association for Labor Legislation, Dr. Barnett has published numerous books in his field.
Wrote Numerous Books
He was the author of “State Banking in the United States,” in 1902; “The Printers,” in 1909; “State Banks and Trust Companies,” in 1911; “Mediation, Investigation and Arbitration in Industrial Disputes,” in 1916, with D. A. McCabe, and “Machinery and Labor,” in 1926.
He also edited “A Trial Bibliography of American Trade Union Publications” in 1904 and was coeditor of “Studies in American Trade Unionism” in 1906. He was a member of the University Club.
Source: The Evening Sun (Baltimore, MD), June 17, 1938
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Barnett, George Ernest.
Bibliography through 1913
A. B., Randolph-Macon College, 1891; fellow in political economy, Johns Hopkins, 1899-1900; instructor in political economy, 1900-1904; Ph. D., 1902 [sic, 1901 appears to be the correct year]; associate in political economy, 1904-1907; associate professor of political economy, 1907-1911; professor of statistics, 1911 —; co-editor of Johns Hopkins Studies, 1908 —. Marshall Prize, Johns Hopkins, 1910.
State Banking in the United States since the Passage of the National Bank Act (J. H. U. Studies, ser. xx, nos. 2-3).
A Method of Determining the Jewish Population of Large Cities in the United States (Publications of the American Jewish Historical Society, 1902, no. 10, pp. 37-45).
The Jewish Population of Maryland (American Jewish Year Book, 1902-1903, pp. 46-62).
The Economic Position of Germany (J. H. U. Circular, p. 80, June, 1902).
The Maryland Workmen’s Compensation Act (Quarterly Journal of Economics, xvi, 591-594, August, 1902).
A Working Bibliography of Trade Unions (J. H. U. Circular, pp. 36-37, April, 1903).
Editor, A Trial Bibliography of American Trade-Union Publications (J. H. U. Studies, ser. xxii, nos. 1-2. Second edition, Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins Press. 1907. Pp.139).
Shop Rules of the International Typographical Union ( J. H. U. Circular, pp. 3-8, May, 1904).
The Introduction of the Linotype (Yale Review, xiii, 251-273, November, 1904).
________ and J. H. Hollander, editors. The Economic Seminary, 1904-1905, 1905-1906, 1906-1907, 1907-1908, 1908-1909, 1909-1910, 1910-1911 (J. H. U. Circular, June, 1905, March, 1906, April, 1907, May, 1908, April, 1909, April, 1910, April, 1911).
The End of the Maryland Workmen’s Compensation Act (Quarterly Journal of Economics, xix, 320-322, February, 1905).
The Origin of the Constitution of the Typographical Union (J. H. U. Circular, pp. 3-6, June, 1905). and J. H. Hollander, editors. Studies in American Trade Unionism (New York: H. Holt and Co. 1906. Pp. v, 380).
The Government of the Typographical Union (Studies in American Trade Unionism, pp. 13-41).
Collective Bargaining in the Typographical Union (Studies in American Trade Unionism, pp. 153-182).
The Standard Wage as a Bargaining Device (J. H. U. Circular, pp. 7-11, March, 1906).
The Budget of the Typographical Union (J. H. U. Circular, pp. 9-12, April, 1907).
Territorial Jurisdiction of the International Typographical Union (J. H. U. Circular, pp. 11-18, May, 1908).
The Printers; A Study in American Trade Unionism (American Economic Association Quarterly, third ser., vol. x, no. 3. Pp. vii, 387. Marshall Prize).
Labor Organization in the South (The South in the Building of the Nation, v, 144-146, vi, 36-40. Richmond, Va.: The Southern Historical Publication Society. [c1909-1913] ).
The State Finances of North Carolina (The South in the Building of the Nation, v, 529-532, vi, 507-511).
Economic Statistics in the South (The South in the Building of the Nation, v, 563-564, vi, 542-545).
The Piece System of Remuneration in the Printing Trade (J. H. U. Circular, pp. 5-11, April, 1909 ).
The Growth of State Banks and Trust Companies (Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, xxxvi, 613-625, November, 1910).
The “One Man Office” and the Typographical Union (J. H. U. Circular, pp. 8-15, April, 1910).
State Banks and Trust Companies since the Passage of the National Bank Act (Publications of National Monetary Commission. 61st Cong., 3d sess. Sen. Doc. No. 659. Pp.366).
Recent Tendencies in State Banking Legislation (Proceedings of the Academy of Political Science in the City of New York, i, 270-284).
The Breaking Down of the Distinctions between the Classes of Banks in the United States (J. H. U. Circular, pp. 8-12, April, 1911).
National and District Systems of Collective Bargaining in the United States (Quarterly Journal of Economics, xxvi, 425-443, May, 1912).
A Documentary History of American Labor (Political Science Quarterly, xxvii, 298-304, June, 1912).
The Dominance of the National Union in American Labor Organization (Quarterly Journal of Economics, xxvii, 455-481, May, 1913).
Source: Publications of Members and Graduates of the Departments of History, Political Economy, and Political Science, 1901-1915 (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press, 1915), pp. 9-11.
Note: [have not consulted yet]
Lavarello, Angela. Bibliography of the writings of George E. Barnett (Baltimore: Typescript (7 leaves), 1938). Copy at the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign.
Image Source: From a portrait of George Ernest Barnett at Johns Hopkins University graphic and pictorial collection.