Joseph H. Dahmus

Joseph H. Dahmus March 22, 1909 - March 7, 2005 Joseph H. Dahmus - PSU Professor Emeritus Medieval History Joseph Henry Dahmus, 95 of 720 Jackson Street, State College, died peacefully at his home on March 7, 2005. Born on March 22, 1909, he married Mildred Kling of Mount Carmel, IL, his wife for 65 years. He is survived by her and their ten sons and daughters: John, Nacogdoches, TX; Rosemary Fudeman, Princeton, MA; Helen Jumpeter, Hazleton, PA; Claire Marks, Foxpoint, WI; Edward, Boca Raton, FL; Mary Jane Barrett, Saint Louis, MO; Robert, Hummelstown, PA, Margaret Walsh, Chesterfield, VA; James, Cincinnati, OH; and Elizabeth, Hummelstown, PA. Dr. Dahmus is also survived by his sister, Rosa Trapp, Paris, IL; and two brothers, Maurice, Jerseyville, IL; and Roman, Waterloo, IL. Nine grandsons, ten granddaughters, and 3 great-grandsons survive him, along with numerous nieces and nephews. Dr. Dahmus was preceded in death by his parents, Henry Dahmus (Knobel, AR) and Rosa Rahe (Muncie, IN). Two sisters, Pauline Dahmus and Mary (later Sister Mary Dunstan, OSB) and two brothers, Rudolph and Monsignor Bede Dahmus, OSB, all of North Dakota, also preceded him in death, as did his granddaughter, Joan, the first child of John and Loretta Dahmus. Dr. Dahmus taught at Penn State University from 1947 until his retirement in 1974 as Professor Emeritus of Medieval History and Fellow of the Institute for the Arts and Humanistics Studies at Penn State. Prior to 1947, he taught at Mount St. Vincent College, NY; Aquinas College in Grand Rapids, MI; and St. John's University in Brooklyn, NY. Dr. Dahmus, a graduate of the Josephinum College in Columbus, OH, received his Master's Degree in the Classics from St. Louis University, in St. Louis, MO; and his PhD in Medieval History from the University of Illinois, Urbana, IL. Dr. Dahmus made a significant contribution to medieval history research. He published eleven books, numerous scholarly articles, and over sixty book reviews. His monograph, The Prosecution of John Wyclyf (Yale, 1952), established the now generally accepted view that Wyclyf did not enjoy the sympathy of either government or people in his attack on the medieval church. His book, The Middle Ages: A Popular History (Doubleday, 1968) was selected by the prestigious History Book Club of London, England, in 1969 as its Book of the Month. The best known of his works, Dictionary of Medieval Civilization (Macmillan, 1984), a valuable reference book for the Middle Ages, is available at many respected university libraries in the United States. Among the books that Dr. Dahmus has published, his "seven series" are the most popular. He published Seven Medieval Kings in 1967 (Doubleday), Seven Medieval Queens in 1972 (Doubleday), and upon his retirement, published Seven Medieval Historians in 1982 (Nelson-Hall) and Seven Decisive Battles of the Middle Ages in 1983 (Nelson-Hall). Through Dr. Dahmus' scholarly contributions, the study of medieval history became an important part of Penn State's History Department's offerings. Dr. Dahmus also gave medieval studies a prominence at Penn State by initiating and organizing the Medieval Studies Committee and the Medieval Studies major, and interdisciplinary program of the College of the Liberal Arts. Due to his continuing scholarly activities after his retirement, Dr. Dahmus received the Liberal Arts Alumni Society Emeritus Distinction Award. In 1947, when Dr. Dahmus began his teaching career at Penn State, he and his wife Mildred settled in Pleasant Gap. During these years, while he spent numerous hours in teaching and research, and in church affairs for St. John's Church and School in Bellefonte, Joseph (known as Joe to his friends and colleagues) also made sure that his children and their friends would have a place to have fun. At Joe and Mildred's home in Pleasant Gap could be found most of the neighboring children because Joe, with help from his wife's father, William Kling, built a combination basketball, volleyball, and badminton area, amenable to roller-skating, along with numerous swings, parallel bars, sandbox area, hopscotch and shuffle-board areas. Most of the neighborhood children also enjoyed the use of a softball field that Joe, along with his friend and neighbor, Dr. Neil McNall, another Penn State professor, cleared for the area children's use and fun. In 1961, Joe and Mildred moved their family and College Heights in State College, where he and his children could walk to the Penn State campus. Although some of his children have received university degrees from other institutions, all of his ten children have received university degrees from other institutions, all of his ten children have received at least one degree from Penn State, which include ten bachelors, six masters and two M.D. degrees, the largest number of persons from a single family ever to have graduated from the university. After his retirement from Penn State, in addition to his scholarly activities, and his numerous contributions to Our Lady of Victory Church in State College, Joe spent many hours creating or refinishing many beautiful furniture pieces for his children, playing tennis and racquetball at the campus and Bridge at the University Club. In his family's view, he lived his life well, with integrity and courage. He will be greatly missed by his wife, sons, daughters, relatives and family friends. There will be a private memorial service at the convenience of the family. Memorial donations may be made to the Penn State Catholic Center, State College, PA; Our Lady of Victory Church, 820 Westerly Parkway, State College, PA 16803; St. John's Catholic Church, 134 East Bishop Street, Bellefonte, PA 16823; or to Centre Crossings Hospice, 2437 Commercial Boulevard, State College, PA 16803. Arrangements are entrusted to the James L. Schwartz Home for Funerals, 247 Chestnut Street, Mifflinburg, PA. 570-966-2702 For more information, to send condolences or sign the guest book, please visit our website at www.schwartzfh.com.