Henry Greenwood Bugbee, Jr. was born in February of 1915 to Dr. Henry G. Bugbee and Mrs. Della S. Bugbee in New York City. He had two siblings: Dorothy and Eleanor. Bugbee received his B.A. in philosophy from Princeton University in 1936, submitting "In Demonstration of the Spirit" as an honors thesis before beginning graduate studies at the University of California, Berkeley. Bugbee's time at Berkeley was interrupted by service in the US Navy where he earned the rank of Lieutenant and engaged in minesweeping, patrol and escort duty on ships in the Pacific. Following his service, Bugbee returned to his graduate studies at Berkeley, completing his PhD in 1946 under Dr. Jacob Loewenberg. After completing his education, Bugbee's teaching career took him to the University of Nevada at Reno, Stanford, Harvard, Chatham College, Penn State, and the University of Montana where he taught, with some interludes, from 1957 through his official retirement in 1977. At the University of Montana, Bugbee quickly became the chair of the philosophy department and was instrumental in building the program and creating and maintaining an intensive humanities program.
Best known for his book
Bugbee had five children and two step-children. With his first wife, Jeanie Abbot, he had Ann, Joan and Bruce. With his second wife, Daphne Bugbee Jones, he had Barbara and Taj. Bugbee married Marlene Zentz in 1977. He married Sally Moore in 1982, and had step-children Jonathan and Megan. Henry Bugbee had a stroke and experienced dementia in the last years of his life. He passed away on December 18, 1999.
This collection contains materials relating to Henry Bugbee and his academic work. The bulk of the collection is made up of lecture typescripts and class material from his teaching career. The class material found in this collection begins with Bugbee's time as an assistant professor at Harvard University where he taught entry level courses on ethics and the philosophy of life. After leaving Harvard and publishing
This collection has been arranged in six series:
Series I: Personal Information, 1939-2015, 0.5 linear feet
Subseries 1: Papers, 1939-2015, 0.3 linear feet
Subseries 2: Photographs, 1944-1985 and undated, 0.2 linear feet
Series II: Written Works, 1936-2017, 0.7 linear feet
Subseries 1: Essays and Notes, 1936-1998, 0.5 linear feet
Subseries 2: External Works Related to Bugbee, 1979-2017, 0.1 linear feet
Subseries 3: Essays by Various Authors, 1950-1991, 0.1 linear feet
Series III: Class Material, 1947-1979, 1.7 linear feet
Subseries 1: Class Transcripts and Notes, 1947-1979, 1.6 linear feet
Subseries 2: Student Grades, 1956-1979 - RESTRICTED, 0.1 linear feet
Series IV: Personal Artwork and Artifacts, 1998-1999 and undated, 1.2 linear feet
Series V: Contributions from Others, 2020-2021, 0.1 linear feet
Subseries 1: Gary Whited, 2020, 1 folder
Subseries 2: James G. Todd, 2021, 1 folder
Subseries 3: Richard Gotshalk, 1957-1958, 1 folder
Series VI: Home Movies, 1931-1939, 7 tapes
Series VII: Audio Recordings, circa 1990s-2000
Researchers must use collection in accordance with the policies of Archives and Special Collections, the Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library, and The University of Montana-Missoula. Student grades in Series III are restricted. Contact the repository for details.
Researchers are responsible for using in accordance with 17 U.S.C. and any other applicable statutes. Non-exclusive intellectual property rights to some materials in the collection are held by the University of Montana.
Henry Bugbee Papers, Archives and Special Collections, Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library, The University of Montana-Missoula.
The majority of professional materials in this collection were held by Henry Bugbee's wife, Sally Moore, before being loaned to David Rodick, who held them until their transfer to Archives and Special Collections in 2020 and 2021. Moore donated the majority of personal materials in this collection in 2020.
The majority of the Henry Bugbee collection was gifted to the Archives in 2020.
Many class transcripts, notes, and syllabi located outside Bugbee’s original bindings contained multiple copies, the copies of highest quality were kept, and duplicates were removed. Other photocopied material was removed when the original was intact and legible. The collection also contained numerous external essays written before and after Bugbee’s death. Essays written after Bugbee’s death, which did not directly relate to his work, were removed. Several newspaper clippings and notebooks emptied of their contents were removed.
In 2024, the VHS tapes from Series VI were digitized.
A brief series of letters between Henry Bugbee and Hannah Arendt may be found in the Hannah Arendt Papers at the Library of Congress.
Interviews from the
This collection is indexed under the following headings in the online catalog. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons, or places should search the catalog using these headings.
This series contains basic biographical information, personal correspondence, obituaries, and photographs.
Correspondence was grouped by date or specific individual. The subseries is organized chronologically.
Written by a nurse caring for Bugbee
Correspondence had been removed from envelopes prior to deposit at the Archives.
Subseries two is organized chronologically and by context.
This series contains published and unpublished essays, various notes, annotated typescripts, and external works related to Bugbee or containing excerpts of his work. It has been divided into three subseries. Subseries one contains Bugbee’s own written work. Subseries two contains writings about Bugbee and his work. Subseries three contains essays written by various authors. The content of these works is not directly related to Bugbee, but many have light annotation or underlining, presumably by Bugbee.
This subseries is arranged chronologically, except that Bugbee's notes are at the end of the subseries.
Page 89
Essays included: A Venture in the Open; Thoughts on Creation; A Way of Reading the Book of Job; The Philosophic Significance of the Sublime; On Starting with Love; L’Exigence Ontologique; Le Recueillement et L’accueil; Education and the Style of our Lives; Wilderness in America; Loneliness, Solitude and the Two-Fold Way in Which Concern Seems to be Claimed
In French
All work is in English
Includes excerpt from
This is the text of the 1993 Bugbee Lecture at the University of Montana
This is Bugbee's translation of the work into English
Author unidentified. Includes a chapter titled "Henry Bugbee, religious philosopher"
This draft contains alternative pages throughout
Includes multiple drafts, manuscript, and typescript
Mostly in English, but some portions are written in French
Fragmented
Very fragmented, possibly written under the cognitive effects of dementia
Very fragmented, possibly written under the cognitive effects of dementia
This subseries is arranged chronologically.
Author unknown
The class material in series III contains lecture notes, supplementary notes, and syllabi from Bugbee’s teaching career at Harvard University and the University of Montana. Material dated after 1957 are from classes taught at the University of Montana. Depending on the specific course, the lecture notes are either typed or handwritten. These notes are generally formal, dated, and closely mirror the shape of class lectures. Supplementary notes may be found throughout individual class folders and include short descriptions or analyses of particular texts or concepts.
Class material, when arranged in Bugbee’s original bindings, were kept in their original order and arranged chronologically. Other class material preserved outside of Bugbee’s original bindings were grouped by specific class and arranged chronologically; Student grades were relocated to a separate, restricted box.
Access is restricted to student grades in this series.
This subseries has been arranged chronologically.
Pagination fragmented
Folder 1 of 2
Folder 2 of 2
Folder 1 of 2
Folder 2 of 2. Student grades relocated to box 9
Student grades relocated to box 9
Folder 1 of 2
Folder 2 of 2. Student grades relocated to box 9
Folder 1 of 2
Folder 2 of 2 Student grades relocated to box 9
Student grades relocated to box 9
Student grades relocated to box 9
This subseries is arranged chronologically.
This subseries is restricted because of the presence of student grades.
From Philosophy B-151
From Philosophy B-152
From Philosophy 354
From Philosophy 120
From Philosophy 355
From Philosophy 355
From Philosophy 460
This series contains two paintings by Bugbee created towards the end of his life, and his favorite hat.
Note from Sally Moore: Henry's fishing hat, which belonged to his father. At one point Henry pasted together where the creases on the top had split.
Note from Sally Moore: My daughter, Megan, who is an artist was having Henry and me do a little painting exercise. This was Henry's.
Folder includes Western Montana Fair 1st place ribbon. Note from Sally Moore: Henry was in a nursing home in his final year of dementia. He made this in a program there.
This series contains content by or about Bugbee given by others to become part of the Bugbee archival collection. It includes writings and reminiscences about Bugbee.
This series is generally arranged by date of receipt of content.
Pages 239, 278, and 295
This series contains home movings of Bugbee with his family. The recordings were provided to the Archives on VHS tapes.
Shots of a rowing and crew competition (likely at Princeton), sailing, hiking, and fishing.
Shots of outdoor activities including camping, fishing, horse back riding/ packing, wildlife, boating, dog sledding, ski jumping. Scenes showing winter activities, the Stampede at Cody, Wyoming and the Stampede Parade, and shots of Yellowstone National Park.
Shots of an estate, boat, river views, ocean fishing, cargo boats, woods and a park, steam boats, mountains, a pack train, picnic, camping, and lake scenes.
Shots of travels in Italy. Scenes from Italian towns and cities, a boat/ship, a party, scenery and a lodge, tennis, snow scenes/ winter activities including skiing and hockey, and a pack train trip in an unknown forest. Some portions of this film are in color.
Shots of people horse back riding in the mountains, camp scenes, and shots of a rowing competition (Likely at Princeton).
Shots of girls running relay races, scenes on an unidentified lake in a row boat. Shots of people playing tennis and other outdoor activities. Shots of a beach, sailboats, and a car driving.
Child playing in the ocean. Scenes of individuals playing deck tennis on a ship and shots of life boats. Shots from an airplane and of an unknown airport. Shots of an individual fishing from a boat, a boat docking, people swimming in the ocean. Scenes from a commercial airport (unknown location) and people by a pool. Film footage of Henry Bugbee's wedding to Jeanie in 1937. Shots of a backyard with dog, neighborhood of an unknown location near a beach. Shots of Henry Bugbee, Jeanie and their daughter Ann. Pack train, snow scenes, sled dogs,,and a hunting party.
The series consists of audio recordings. The majority of the recordings are memorial service information and interviews with Bugbee, some of which have been transcribed and published in the book Wilderness in America. The audio recordings were donated to the Archives on cassette tapes.
These recordings are interviews with Henry Bugbee and Bugbee's friend, Ray Lanfear. The interviews were commpleted in the early 1990s when Bugbee's dementia was progressing. These interviews appear in the book "Wilderness in America"
These recordings are interviews with Henry Bugbee and Bugbee's friend, Ray Lanfear. The interviews were commpleted in the early 1990s when Bugbee's dementia was progressing. These interviews appear in the book "Wilderness in America"
These recordings are interviews with Henry Bugbee and Bugbee's friend, Ray Lanfear. The interviews were commpleted in the early 1990s when Bugbee's dementia was progressing. These interviews appear in the book "Wilderness in America"
An audio recording of the memorial held for Henry Bugbe at the University of Montana President's Room in Brantly Hall.
An audio recording of the memorial held for Henry Bugbe at the University of Montana President's Room in Brantly Hall.
Henry/ Fly Fishing Rock Creek. Henry/ Mike Wilkerson "A River Runs Through It"
Henry/ Fly Fishing Rock Creek Clip 1993. News Item on Henry's Death.