In Memoriam: Pauline Adams, 1922-2024

Pauline Gordon Adams, a retired associate professor from Michigan State University, passed away on January 16 at the age of 101.

Adams was born in Brooklyn, New York, on March 24, 1922. After graduating high school at 16 years old, she went on to receive a bachelor’s degree in history from Brooklyn College and a master’s degree in economic history from Columbia University. During her graduate education she studied American labor history.

When she first came to Michigan State University, Adams served on the faculty in what was then called the Basic College Department of American Thought and Language. She taught courses on American history and literature from the colonial era to present day, as well as expository writing. Adams retired from Michigan State University in 1992 at the rank of associate professor. However, despite retiring from her faculty position, she still continued to teach at what was then known as the Michigan Evening College that catered to adults in the local East Lansing community. She was also the co-author of A Populist Assault: Sarah E. Van De Vort Emery on American Democracy 1862–1895 (Popular Press, 1982).

“Pauline Adams arrived at Michigan State, with her husband Walter, as it began to emerge as a respected and global university,” said Teresa K. Woodruff, interim president of Michigan State University. “She was an active part of its great story for many years, and I am privileged to have known her and to have spent wonderful time in her company.”