Francis W. Bradley 1907–1953

A native of Abbeville, S.C., Bradley first came
to the South Carolina College in 1903 and earned
a BA from the University of South Carolina in
1907. Immediately thereafter he was hired as an
instructor of foreign languages, teaching in his specialty, German, and earned an MA in 1909. In 1911, he was made an adjunct professor. During and after World War I he served in the Army as an interpreter, participating in the Paris Peace Conference. He returned to USC in 1919 as assistant professor of foreign languages and in 1921 was made head of the newly created Department of German. In the meantime, he was working toward a Ph.D. in German from the University of Chicago, which he earned in 1926. Soon thereafter he served as acting dean of the University from 1926–1927, and again from 1931–1932. After that position was abolished, he was made dean of the College of Arts and Sciences in 1932. He served as that college’s dean until 1946 and then served as the University’s chief academic officer until the summer of 1952, when he briefly served as acting president. He retired in 1953 after a 50-year
association with the University as student, professor,
dean, and president.