John S. Kyser

John Schenebly Kyser (September 8, 1900 – July 14, 1975) was an American historian and geographer who served as the president of Northwestern State University in Natchitoches, Louisiana, from 1954-1966.

Background

Kyser was born in El Paso, a small city in Woodford County in north central Illinois. His parents were John Hamilton Kyser and the former Elizabeth Schuman. He was educated in Illinois public schools and received his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1921 from the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, Michigan. He obtained further education at the University of Chicago, the University of California, Berkeley, and the University of Heidelberg in Heidelberg, Germany, before receiving his Ph.D. in 1937 from Louisiana State University at Baton Rouge. His doctoral dissertation is entitled "The Evolution of Louisiana Parishes in Relation to Growth and Distribution in Population."

From 1921-1923, Kyser served a year each on the faculty of LSU and Tulane University in New Orleans.

Northwestern State University