Fr. Vincent J. Flynn Presidential Records
Scope and Contents
The papers in the Flynn collection are primarily from the period of the Flynn tenure as College President. The remarkable post-war growth of the College and its rapidly changing character are fully reflected in the Flynn papers, particularly in Section II. of the inventory ("College of St. Thomas") which consists of official files of the President's office. A second major group of documents in the collection is Flynn's file of working scholarly papers. These reflect his special academic interests: 15th and 16th century English literature and history, the history of Renaissance Anglo-Italian and Anglo-Papal relations, and the history of the English community in Rome during the Renaissance. The story of St. Thomas Military Academy, which was associated with the College until 1964, is well documented in the Flynn papers for the years 1944-1956. Flynn was also the President of the Academy as were all College of St. Thomas presidents until 1964. Flynn's many activities outside the St. Thomas community as scholar, educator and citizen are reflected in Section III.
Dates
- created: 1923-1965
Creator
- Flynn, Vincent J. (Vincent Joseph) (Person)
- College of St. Thomas (Saint Paul, Minn.). President's Office (Organization)
Conditions Governing Access
There are no restrictions on the use of the collection for research purposes.
Conditions Governing Use
The researcher assumes full responsibility for observing all copyright, property and libel laws as they apply.
Biographical or Historical Information
Vincent J. Flynn was born September 11, 1901, in Avoca, Minnesota. He attended the St. Thomas Military Academy (graduating in 1919) and the College of St. Thomas (BA 1923). He entered the St. Paul Seminary in 1921 and was ordained to the priesthood in 1927. He taught at St. Thomas Military Academy for the next three years while working towards his Master's degree in English from University of Minnesota (1929). He did graduate work in English at the University of Chicago from 1930 to 1934, spending 15 months abroad doing research for his doctoral dissertation on "The Life and Works of William Lily." During his research he discovered a manuscript about the Collegio Venerabile Inglese, which shed new light on Anglo-Italian relations during the Renaissance. He completed his dissertation and received his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago in 1939.
In 1935, Flynn was appointed an Assistant Professor in the English Department at the College of St. Thomas and became department chair in 1940. In the summer of 1942, Father Flynn was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship to pursue research regarding the manuscript he discovered while abroad. He returned from his sabbatical leave in September 1943.
Father Flynn was appointed President of the College of St. Thomas and St. Thomas Military Academy following the resignation of Fr. James H. Moynihan in January 1944. He was formally installed as president on April 27, 1944. During his tenure as president of the college, he served on a wide range of committees and boards including the Association of American Colleges (serving as president from 1949 - 1950), the National Student Association and the Minnesota Historical Society.
Fr. Vincent Flynn died July 6, 1956 in St. Paul, MN.
Extent
36.13 Cubic Feet
Language of Materials
English
Method of Acquisition
The papers of the Very Reverend Vincent J. Flynn, President of the College of St. Thomas 1944-56, were deposited in the College Archives shortly after his death on July 6, 1956.
Processing Information
The collection was processed and inventoried in 1977.
Subject
- Flynn, Vincent J. (Vincent Joseph), 1901-1956 (Person)
- College of St. Thomas (Saint Paul, Minn.). President's Office (Organization)
- St. Thomas Military Academy (Saint Paul, Minn.) -- Presidents (Organization)
- St. Thomas Military Academy (Saint Paul, Minn.) -- Administration (Organization)
- College of St. Thomas (Saint Paul, Minn.) -- Presidents (Organization)
- Catholic Church -- Clergy (Organization)
- College of St. Thomas (Saint Paul, Minn.) -- Administration (Organization)
- St. Thomas Military Academy (Saint Paul, Minn.) -- Alumni and alumnae (Organization)
- College of St. Thomas (Saint Paul, Minn.) -- Alumni and alumnae (Organization)
- Saint Paul Seminary (Saint Paul, Minn.) -- Alumni and alumnae (Organization)
- Lily, William, 1468?-1522 (Person)
- Venerable English College (Rome, Italy) (Organization)
Genre / Form
- Business correspondence
- Business records
- Manuscripts
- Personal correspondence
- Records (Documents)
- Speeches
Topical
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- eng
Repository Details
Part of the University of St. Thomas Archives & Manuscript Collections Repository
Department of Special Collections, LL09 O'Shaughnessy-Frey Library
University of St. Thomas
St. Paul MN 55105-1096 US
651-962-5467
uarchives@stthomas.edu