James Hunter Dormon

James Hunter Dormon

James Hunter Dormon, Ph.D., Emeritus Professor of History and American Studies at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, died in New Jersey on January 4, 2021. He was 84 years old.

A celebrated historian, Dr. Dormon earned his Masters and Ph.D at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Dormon developed and directed the Graduate Program in American Studies at ULL, and held the title "University Distinguished Professor" from 1973 on. He pursued post-doctoral work as a NEH Fellow in Residence in Anthropology at the University of California, Santa Barbara. In 1980-81, as Fulbright Professor, he taught American Studies at Warwick University (UK). From 1989 to 1994, he chaired the History Department at ULL.

The first publication to establish Dormon's scholarly credentials, Theater in the Antebellum South, was followed by a variety of books focused on African-Americans, Cajuns, and Creoles of Color, some thirty-five articles on American ethnic and cultural history, and numerous professional papers. He was most proud of his LEH-funded and LA State Department-sponsored teacher-training institutes designed to address and remediate racial and ethnic bias. Dr. Dormon was revered as a keen academic and personal counselor to his students and colleagues. He was proud to have mentored many scholars whose careers have broadened America's educational and cultural boundaries.

A native of Louisiana, Dormon divided the last twenty years of his life between New Orleans and New York/New Jersey, enjoying annual summer travels abroad. In retirement, he wrote his first novel, Crossing Rampart Street, a fictionalized memoir set in 1960s New Orleans. His enthusiasm for live jazz and the New Orleans Saints was matched by his passion for Wagnerian opera.

Dr. Dormon is survived by his wife, Gloria Konig Fiero, his son James Mahlon Dormon, his step-son, Jason Colony Fiero, and his grandchildren, Emily Dormon, Samantha Fiero, and Avery Fiero.