Henry Remak was born in 1916 in Germany. He fled Nazi Germany in 1936 and took up residence here in Bloomington. While he hadn't originally planned on becoming a teacher, but he did eventually end up teaching in the Germanic Studies, Comparative Literature and Western European Studies Departments at IU. He was a distinguished scholar and a favorite on campus. Professor Remak died last February at the age of 92 and he still held an office at IU.
It was a great research project to plunge into the life of a distinguished IU professor. I did my undergraduate work at IU but didn't study in any of his departments, so I did not know of his impact and influence. While I enjoy all aspects of the archives internship so far, I think that reference work is becoming my favorite!
I never had the pleasure of meeting him, either, but I've worked closely with his family on transferring his papers to the Archives. Every indication is that he was, as you stated, an absolutely extraordinary man. Packing up his papers, I skimmed some of his correspondence and he had a genuine interest in and love of people, particularly his students. A special trait indeed.
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