University Libraries

The recent release of the book entitled: Seton Hall University, A History, 1856-2006. (New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2023) by Dr. Dermot Quinn is a detailed work that commemorates the development of our institution over its first 150 years of operation. This work is the detailed product of the documentary vision achieved by Dr. Quinn which required the central usage of primary resources housed within the University Libraries and the Monsignor William Noé Field Archives & Special Collections Center in particular. Dr. Quinn noted that our libraries were his “second home” while in the process of researching and writing this volume.

Dermot Quinn is a professor of history at Seton Hal University. Educated at Trinity College, Dublin, and New College, Oxford, his books include Understanding Northern Ireland (Manchester: Baseline Books, 1993), Patronage and Piety: English Roman Catholics and Politics 1850-1900 (Stanford CA: Stanford University Press, 1993), and The Irish in New Jersey: Four Centuries of American Life (New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2004).

As Dr. Quinn wrote in the opening sequence of this tome which provides a helpful introduction to the Story of Setonia: “In 1856 James Roosevelt Bayley, Roman Catholic Bishop of Newark, founded a school in Madison, New Jersey, calling it Seton Hall College in honor of his aunt, Elizabeth Ann Bayley Seton. The name was a gesture of piety and a statement of intent. By honoring the greatest promoter of Catholic schools in early nineteenth century America, Bayley wished to continue her work of building American Catholicism through education, charity, and moral instruction. . . . Seton Hall was the seed and fruit of his vision. In the thin soil of mid-Victorian New Jersey Catholicism, he built more than a school. He built a people. . . Bayley’s faith in the progressive value of education, in the pious purposes of Catholic schools, in the powerful generosity of poor people, had to do with the future. . . “ (Quinn, Dermot. Seton Hall University, A History 1856-2006, 1.)

In regard to advance praise, the publisher’s note found on the book jacket of this work expresses the following feelings regarding the effort of Dr. Quinn: “In this vivid and elegantly written history, Dermot Quinn examines how Seton Hall was able to develop as an institution while keeping faith with its founder’s vision. Looking at the men and women who made Seton Hall what it is today, he paints a compelling picture of a university that has enjoyed its share of triumphs but has also suffered tragedy and loss. He shows how it was established in an age of prejudice and transformed in the aftermath of war, while exploring how it negotiated between a distinctly Roman Catholic identity and a mission to include Americans of all faiths.”

When it comes to the size of this volume and the usage of resources perspective from various University Libraries sources total 560 pages total with 60 of those accounting for endnotes that specifically credit each of the sources that represent background information found within the pages of this volume.

The University Libraries features copies of the book available for review or checkout from Walsh Library under the LC Call Number: LD4931.S32 Q56 2023. More information on the book proper can be found via the following link = Quinn, Dermot. Seton Hall University, A History 1856-2006

Additional information can be found in the near future within our E-Repository as well –  E-Repository = Quinn, Dermot. Seton Hall University, A History 1856-2006

Resources to aid your own journey through Seton Hall University can be found within the Monsignor William Noé Field Archives & Special Collections Center = Monsignor William Noe’ Field Archives & Special Collections Center and through our University History Library Guide = Seton Hall University History Library Guide

Please stay tuned as we plan to have more recognition of this book and the work of Dr. Quinn during the Fall 2023 semester.

Need help? Book a research appointment here: Research Appointment Site

Happy Reading and “Hazard Zet Forward!”