Lewis & Clark College

Harcourt, Hugh (1952)

Hugh Harcourt was born in Portland, Oregon as the son of a physician father. After a period of financial difficulties, his mother was invited to the faculty of Lewis & Clark College as a speech therapist by President Morgan Odell, a family friend. Because of that, Mr. Harcourt was able to attend the College free of charge. While here, he primarily studied sciences, including biology and psychology, convinced he was supposed to enter into the medical field like his father. However, his interests were really piqued by a philosophy class, though he did not know at the time this is what he should have pursued. Although he lived off campus, he was involved in various groups associated with the College including the campus choir, water polo team, and a local fraternity. In this oral history, he notes many of the interesting campus dynamics, from the dearth of women in athletics to the unspoken presence of gay students. He graduated in 1952 with a degree in psychology, and later went on to graduate school at the Universities of Copenhagen and Edinburgh, and for much of his life taught philosophy at the American University of Beirut, Lebanon. Due to the civil war there, he later returned to Portland where he briefly taught at Portland State University. He is now retired and lives with his wife in Portland.

Oral history interview of Lewis & Clark alumnus Hugh Harcourt, conducted by Russ Allton on April 5, 2014. History Department, Spring Semester, 2014.

Oral History

Lewis & Clark College

20140405

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Lewis & Clark College: Oral History Project