Pine Mountain Settlement School
Series 09: BIOGRAPHY – Visitor
Series 24: PUBLICATIONS RELATED
Richard Drake, Berea College Professor 1956-1992
Richard B. Drake (1925-2019)

RICHARD DRAKE Visitor
Professor, Berea College, 1956-1992

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TAGS: Richard B. Drake Doane College, University of Chicago, Emory University, Berea College, Appalachian studies, American Missionary Association, history professor, Council of Southern Mountains, Loyal Jones Appalachian Center, Appalachian Studies Conference, Appalachian Notes, Julia A. Drake, Doane College, John C. Campbell Folk School, Berea College Country Dancers

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Dr. Richard Bryant Drake was a well-liked and noteworthy Berea College professor who promoted the studies of Appalachia and appreciation for Appalachia’s rich and diverse culture.

RICHARD DRAKE: Marriage and Education

Richard Drake married Julia A. Drake in 1945 during the time he was serving in the U.S. Navy from 1943-1946. In 1948 he received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Doane College in Crete, Nebraska. He then attended graduate school, earning a Master of Arts degree from the University of Chicago in 1950, followed by teaching American history at Piedmont College, Demorest, Georgia, from 1950 to 1953. He received a Doctor of Philosophy degree from Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1957, while teaching history at Agnes Scott College in Decatur, Illinois, in 1956.

RICHARD DRAKE: At Berea College

In the late 1950s, while Drake was attending Emory University, he was working on research at Berea College for his Ph.D. dissertation on the American Missionary Association (AMA). Incorporated in 1846, the AMA’s focus was on the abolition of slavery and educational opportunities for African-Americans. Drake’s dissertation, “The American Missionary Association and the Southern Negro, 1861–1888” (1957), was centered on AMA’s leaders and goals. Drake was one of the first to research the AMA archives at Berea.

The retirement of the chairman of Berea’s Department of History in 1959 presented Drake with the chance to teach history at the College. Instead of following the usual curriculum, Drake felt that it would be more relevant to focus on Appalachian history. As students became more attuned to the subject, his classes grew to twice their size. The materials he prepared for the Appalachian history classes eventually became a source of study for the Appalachian Volunteers. He remained at Berea until his retirement in 1992, moving from instructor to full professor of history.

In the 1960s Drake successfully campaigned for the establishment of an Appalachian center and Appalachian studies at the College. The Appalachian Center was founded in 1970 at Berea as the first such center in a college or university. In addition, Drake went on to chair the first Appalachian Studies Conference in 1977 and later in 1984.

Today’s Loyal Jones Appalachian Center continues to explore and illuminate the richness of the Appalachian region. Included in the Center is the Appalachian Studies Department, a multidisciplinary program offering course work in various aspects of Appalachia.

RICHARD DRAKE: Other Accomplishments

Drake joined the Council of Southern Mountains (CSM) in the 1960s. As a leader of the commission on natural resources, he worked on the rights of those who worked in the coal mines.

Drake began the quarterly publication, Appalachian Notes, in 1972-1973 and served as editor until 1979. The journal included book reviews and articles about the Appalachian region, ending its run in 1985. 

He was the founder of the Appalachian Studies Association in 1976 and served as president in 1986. He was also a member of the American History Association and the Southern History Association.

In 1982 and 1992, Dr. and Mrs. Drake spent time in Nishinomiya, Hyōgo, Japan, while Drake served as a visiting professor at Kobe College.

RICHARD DRAKE: After Berea College

Richard Drake retired from Berea College in 1999 and was named professor emeritus. Drake then channeled his interests into Appalachia: A History (2002), one of few overviews of the Appalachian region through the eyes of a historian. The description of his book by its publisher,  University Press of Kentucky, states that 

Richard Drake has skillfully woven together the various strands of the Appalachian experience into a sweeping whole. Touching upon folk traditions, health care, the environment, higher education, the role of blacks and women, and much more, Drake offers a compelling social history of a unique American region. 

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Richard Bryant Drake was born in Ames, Iowa, on August 5, 1925, to Alberta Grace Stimson and George Bryant Drake, who was a congregational minister. He had two siblings: George (1934-2022) and Alberta Jane (1928-2018).

In 1945, he married Julia A. Drake, whom he had known since high school. Her parents were Leland Charles Angeline and Genevieve (Walker) Angevine. After earning a BA in music (organ and voice) from Doane College, Julia became a longtime musician, accomplished in piano, organ, hand bells, and recorder. She served as a recorder instructor at John C. Campbell Folk School and the Christmas Country Dance School at Berea College. For many years, she provided music for the Berea College Country Dancers.

The couple had three children, Anne, John Frances, and Margaret.

Julia Leland (Angevine) Drake was born in Kansas in 1925 and died in 2011. Dr. Richard B. Drake died at the age of 93 on June 7, 2019, in Berea, Kentucky.

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