The Samford community is mourning the June 13 death of Dr. David M. Vess, professor emeritus and chair of Samford's History Department 1970-1985.

A European intellectual historian and an authority on the French Revolution, Vess received his Ph.D. from the University of Alabama, where he studied with historian John Fraser Ramsey.

As a professor at Howard College, he quickly established himself as a highly-regarded scholar of European history. His book, The Medical Revolution in France, 1789-1795, remains the definitive study of medicine during the French Revolution.

One former student recalled that Vess “represented the best that college had to offer—intellect, humor, integrity, openness, fairness, compassion, and understanding.”

Historian Wayne Flynt, another of Vess’ students and later a colleague, once wrote that Vess “demonstrated that, even with heavy teaching loads, one could write a fine book and achieve scholarly recognition. "But most of all David shared history and himself with a generation of students beyond just the formal boundaries of a classroom.”

In lieu of flowers, Vess’ family encourages memorial gifts to the David M. Vess Scholarship for Study Abroad or the George V. Irons Scholarship Endowment Fund, both in Samford’s History Department at 800 Lakeshore Dr., Birmingham, AL, 35229.

Visitation will be Saturday, June 16, at 1 p.m. at Ridout’s Valley Chapel in Homewood. The memorial service will begin at 2 p.m.

Obituary

Samford’s History Department