Peter P. Hill papers

Peter Proal Hill (1926- ), Professor Emeritus of History and International Affairs, was University Historian at The George Washington University from 1985-2004, when he retired. Dr. Hill earned his B.A. from Tufts University in 1949, and M.A. from Boston University in 1954. He came to GW in 1957 as a teaching fellow, and earned his Ph.D. from GW in 1966. He taught American and European history, specializing in diplomatic history. From 1984-85 he served as interim dean of the School of Public and International Affairs (which became the Elliott School for International Affairs).

Upon the death of Elmer Louis Kayser in 1985, Dr. Hill took up duties as University Historian. As part of his responsibilities, he traveled to London to consult about the University's coat of arms, which was presented to GW by Britain's York Herald of Arms at the 1999 commencement ceremony. He contributed to the book "From Strength to Strength: A Pictorial History of The George Washington University, 1821-1996," which commemorated the University's 175th anniversary, and researched a number of topics related to GW's history that have been memorialized in descriptive plaques around the campus.

He is author of "William Vans Murray, Federalist Diplomat; the shaping of peace with France, 1797-1801" (1971) and "French perceptions of the early American Republic, 1783-1793" (1988). Dr. Hill was made Professor Emeritus in 1996.

N.B. This history note was written in 2005