William Harrison Mace

Who was William Harrison Mace?

William Harrison Mace was a professor of American history.

Mace was born on a farm near Lexington, Indiana, in 1852. He was the son of Ira Mace and Nancy S. Mace. Mace attended Lexington High School and Indiana State Normal School in Terre Haute, Indiana. After graduating from Indiana State in 1876, Mace became a teacher for three terms in a country school. He later served as a high school principal in Logansport, Indiana and Winamac, Indiana. He next taught history in the schools of Cass County, and Pulaski County, Indiana, and at the Indiana State Normal School.

In 1881, he enrolled at the University of Michigan, where he studied history and received his degree with Phi Beta Kappa honors in 1883. While attending Michigan, he played college football as rusher for the 1882 Michigan Wolverines football team.

After graduating from Michigan, Mace served as the superintendent of public schools in McGregor, Iowa from 1883 to 1885. In 1885, he joined the faculty of DePauw University Normal School, serving as a professor of history from 1885 to 1890. He also received his master's degree in history from Indiana University in 1889.