It is with great sadness that the History Department shares the news of the passing of a beloved colleague and friend, Professor Emeritus of History James (Jamie) Van Horn Melton. Jamie died suddenly and unexpectedly at his home in Atlanta on June 28th.

Jamie touched many people on this campus as a distinguished scholar, generous mentor, inspiring teacher, engaging and supportive colleague, and kind friend. He was born in 1952 in Charlotte, NC, and in 1959, he moved with his parents and two brothers to Chatham, VA. Jamie received his BA in History from Vanderbilt University in 1974 and his PhD in History from the University of Chicago in 1982. During his doctoral studies, he conducted dissertation research in Vienna, Austria as a Fulbright Scholar. After he completed the PhD, he spent two years as an Assistant Professor at the University of Arkansas, three years as an Assistant Professor at Florida International University, and in 1987 he joined the faculty at Emory. He was promoted to Associate Professor in 1990 and Full Professor in 2001. He retired from Emory in 2023.

Jamie left a profound mark as a historian of early modern Europe, Germany, the Enlightenment, and the Atlantic World. He published three single-authored books with Cambridge University Press, two of which garnered national prizes: Absolutism and the Origins of Compulsory Schooling in Prussia and Austria (1988), The Rise of the Public in Enlightenment Europe (2001), and Religion, Community, and Slavery on the Southern Colonial Frontier (2015). His books were translated into German, Spanish, Russian, and Turkish. He also edited or co-edited three scholarly anthologies, published thirty peer-reviewed articles and fifty book reviews, and co-translated a book by an Austrian scholar from German into English. Inspired by his love of opera, he spent his last years at Emory working on a book project focused on the life of an Italian-born librettist who wrote for three of Mozart’s greatest operas. On Jamie’s last day, he was preparing an abstract for a piece based on a keynote address he gave last year in Vienna, which young Austrian scholars had invited him to provide because they considered his first book to be a path-breaking study. It was exciting to see a new generation of scholars inspired by his early work.

Through a remarkable record of service, Jamie left a lasting impact on Emory. He arrived on campus less than a decade after the university received the legendary gift from Robert W. and George Woodruff that transformed it from a regional liberal arts college into a nationally ranked research institution. As a young and ambitious scholar, Jamie was thrilled by the new opportunities that Emory’s expansion presented. At the same time, he and his cohort experienced enormous service burdens as they rolled up their sleeves to help Emory grow. Even among his peer group, Jamie’s contributions stand out. He chaired three departments — History, German Studies, and Spanish and Portuguese — and steered them through challenging times. He also served two terms as Director of Graduate Studies in History, one term as Director of Undergraduate Studies in History, and a three-year term on the College Tenure and Promotion Committee. He chaired twelve faculty search committees across three departments and served as a member of countless others. Outside of Emory, he served as President of the Central European History Society from 2012-2013, chaired five national book prize committees, and sat on numerous editorial boards. These are only some of his most visible service contributions. His ability to give so much time and energy to the communities of which he formed a part while producing field-defining scholarship earned him the deep admiration of colleagues, students, and staff at Emory and beyond.

Jamie brought his whole self to Emory, enriching the lives of those who were lucky enough to work with him. He was warm, funny, passionate, irreverent, and utterly unpretentious. He cared deeply about colleagues, staff, and students, and sought ways to support junior faculty especially. Jamie stood on his principles and lived out his ideals. He was vocal and courageous at key inflection points during his time at Emory, defending faculty governance and publicly supporting contingent faculty, graduate students, and employees. He was a tremendous person, and we will miss him terribly.

Jamie is survived by his wife, Barbara Lawatsch-Melton, his two children, Sarah (Matt Miller) and Peter, his former wife, Donna Walko Melton Provost, and his two brothers Ed (Julie) and Will (Eliza).

– Yanna Yannakakis, Professor and Department Chair