George Catron Hoffmann

1930 - 2021

George Catron Hoffmann

Indianapolis - 90, died on May 10, 2021. He was born on September 20, 1930, in Springfield, Illinois, and was the oldest of four sons of the late George Clarence Hoffmann and Ines Catron Hoffmann.

George graduated from Swarthmore College in 1952 with a B.A. in Political Science and went on to earn an M.A. in 1956 and a Ph.D. in 1961 from the University of Chicago. Between college and graduate school, he served for a year in the U.S. Navy, during the Korean War.

George was a professor of Political Science for his entire career, teaching first at Wittenberg University in Springfield, Ohio, then at Midwestern University in Wichita Falls, Texas, and finally at Butler University in Indianapolis, where he taught from 1964-1991. The courses that he taught included American Presidency and Congress, Constitutional Law, and Modern Political Thought. While at Butler, he served as the Director of Legal Studies from 1982-1989. He also served two terms on the Board of Directors of the Indiana Academy of the Social Sciences and received the George C. Roberts award for best paper at the Indiana Academy meeting in 1994.

George was a member of the Indiana Academy, the Midwest Political Science Association, and the American Political Science Association. In addition to these memberships, he belonged to the Literary Club of Indianapolis, whose meetings he attended for many years. His love of literature was also evidenced by all the books he read, most notably the lengthy biographies of famous political figures. In his retirement, he volunteered as a literacy tutor for children and adults.

Music and sports were also very important to George. He played the piano for many years, and every year he purchased a season subscription to the concerts of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra. He was also a season ticket holder to the Butler University men's basketball games, which he attended with his family during his teaching career and into retirement. Besides watching sports, George played golf his entire life, and he kept active by walking to work, swimming, and hiking in the woods and mountains.

One of George's other true pleasures over the years was travel. He took many trips in his lifetime, covering 47 of the 50 states. His favorite part of the country was the West, where he climbed many high peaks with his father and brothers and later took his own family to enjoy. As a young man, he traveled throughout Western Europe, and then he returned to several of those countries with his wife, Irene.

George was pre-deceased by his wife, Irene Hoffmann, his brother Fred Hoffmann, and his daughter-in-law, Patricia Weitsman. He is survived by his children: Jill Hoffmann (husband, Gordon Strain); David Hoffmann; and Karen Hoffmann (husband, Jeffrey Schang) and by his grandchildren: Marie, Alice, and Sharon Broadway; Sarah and Jonah Hoffmann-Weitsman; and Kayla and Dylan Schang and Cameron Schang Hoffmann.

A memorial service will be held in Indianapolis later this summer. There will be more information to follow on the Crown Hill website, on the IndyStar website, and in The Indianapolis Star newspaper.

In lieu of flowers, the family prefers donations to be made to the Indianapolis Public Library and the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra.