Louis Filler

Who was Louis Filler?

Louis Filler, was an Russian-born American teacher and a widely published scholar specializing in American studies.

He was born in Dubossary, Russian Empire, to Jewish parents, and emigrated to the United States in 1914. Raised in Philadelphia, Filler attended Central High School. He received his bachelor's degree from Temple University in 1934, and his master degree and doctorate from Columbia University.

He worked as a historian for the American Council of Learned Societies from 1942 to 1944 and then as a research historian for the Quartermaster General in Washington, D.C. from 1944 to 1946. He taught at Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio, first as professor of American civilization from 1953 until 1976, and then as Distinguished University Professor of American Culture and Society, beginning in 1976.

His scholarly writings focused on muckrakers, abolition, and other reform movements. He also edited anthologies and other scholarly works.

He was a Fulbright Scholar at the University of Bristol, England, for the academic year 1950-1951 and at the University of Erlangen in Germany for the academic year 1979-80.

He died on December 22, 1998 in Austin, Texas.