Claude Nolen

Claude Hunter Nolen, teacher, scholar, and social activist, died at his South Austin home on March 2, 2015, surrounded by four generations of his loving family. Born in Memphis, Tennessee on July 10, 1921, he grew up in that city and on a farm in Imboden, Arkansas, during the Great Depression. As a U.S. Army infantryman during World War II, he served in the Philippines, New Guinea, Australia, and with the occupying force in Tokyo at the war's conclusion. In 1947, while recuperating from malaria in a Memphis VA hospital, Claude was cared for by young nurse Jeanne Chappuis of Crowley, Louisiana. They were married later that year and began a family that grew to include six children.

Claude earned his B.A. from Memphis State University, his M.A. from Louisiana State University, and his Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin. In 1956 he joined the history faculty at St. Edward's University, beginning a career that lasted until his 1991 retirement as professor emeritus. A tireless and enthusiastic teacher, he walked back and forth to work for 35 years, wrote two books on African-American history, and was an avid and insightful follower of current events. The Nolen home on Alpine Road was a lively gathering place for relatives, colleagues, and students, while anyone who entered it as a stranger left as a friend. Playing ping pong with Dr. Nolen was a virtual rite of passage for family and visitors.

The Nolens' warm hospitality reflected a dedication to charity as a foundational principle. A devout Roman Catholic and a member of St. Ignatius Martyr parish, Claude taught his children in word and deed the importance of doing the right thing. With a combination of personal humility and a fierce sense of fairness, he was an early, active supporter of the civil rights movement and a vocal defender of the rights of unborn babies.

At home, when he wasn't devouring one of the hundreds of books in his library, he spent hours out of doors, chopping wood, planting trees and flowers, pointing out birds or playing horseshoes with one of his many grandchildren, and—into his 90s—cutting a spacious lawn with a push mower. Relishing physical labor as much as the life of the mind, he was in every respect "a man for all seasons."

Claude was preceded in death by his parents, Ernest and Margaret; brothers, Henry and Ernest; sisters, Ellamarie, Marguerite and Ruth; and grandson, Matthew Coles. He is survived by Jeanne, his wife of 67 years; his brother, James; his sister, Betty; his children, Cosette, Andree, Denise, Adrienne, Hunt, and Lisa; seventeen grandchildren; and seventeen great-grandchildren.

Visitation will be held from 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm on Thursday, March 5, 2015 at Weed-Corley-Fish Funeral Home, 2620 South Congress with Recitation of the Holy Rosary to begin at 7:00 pm Mass of the Christian Burial will be celebrated at 2:00 pm on Friday, March 6, 2015 at St. Ignatius Martyr Catholic Church. Interment will follow at Assumption Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers contributions may be made to St. Ignatius Catholic School.