Dr. Lawrence Goodwyn

Dr. Lawrence Goodwyn
Durham
The author of a seminal history of Populism died at his home in Durham, North Carolina on September 29th.
Lawrence Goodwyn was a professor of history at Duke University for 32 years and a theorist of social movements. His book, Democratic Promise: The Populist Moment in America redefined the most important reform movement of the 19th century. He also authored Breaking the Barrier: The rise of Solidarity in Poland.
The son of a career army officer, Goodwyn was born in Ft. Huachuca, Arizona in 1928.
After earning his Ph.D. at the University of Texas, Goodwyn founded the Oral History Program at Duke. He helped lead the successful campaign to keep the Nixon Presidential Library out of Duke University. He was an impassioned fan of the Dallas Cowboys, the Atlanta Braves, and, especially, the Duke Blue Devils basketball team.
He is survived by his wife of 55 years Nell; his son, Wade, and daughter-in-law, Sharon; his daughter, Lauren, and son-in-law, Michael Whalen; his grandson, Rynne Whalen; and his three granddaughters, Kiera Whalen, and Hannah and Samantha Goodwyn.