The Negro in France

This historical study examines the black experience in Metropolitan France from the 1600s to 1960. Shelby T. McCloy explores the literary and cultural contributions of people of color to French society—from Alexandre Dumas to Rene Maran—and charts their political ascension. Shelby T. McCloy, professor of history at the University of Kentucky, is the author of several books and articles on European history.https://uknowledge.uky.edu/upk_black_studies/1001/thumbnail.jp

French Inventions of the Eighteenth Century

The eighteenth century, age of France’s leadership in Western civilization, was also the most flourishing period of French inventive genius. Generally obscured by England’s great industrial development are the contributions France made in the invention of the balloon, paper-making machines, the steamboat, the semaphore telegraph, gas illumination, the silk loom, the threshing machine, the fountain pen, and even the common graphite pencil. Shelby T. McCloy believes that these and many other inventions which have greatly influenced technological progress made prerevolutionary France the rival, if not the leader, of England. In his book McCloy analyzes the factors that led to France’s inventive activity in the eighteenth century. He also advances reasons for France’s failure to profit from her inventive prowess at a time when England’s inventions were being put to immediate and practical use. Shelby T. McCloy, professor of history at the University of Kentucky, is the author of several books and articles on European history.https://uknowledge.uky.edu/upk_history_of_science_technology_and_medicine/1008/thumbnail.jp

The Negro in the French West Indies

In the research for his book on the opportunities of the black population in Metropolitan France, Shelby T. McCloy found the treatment accorded to people of color in the French colonies so significantly different as to warrant a separate book. This historical study examines the black experience in the French West Indies—the islands of Martinique, Guadeloupe, and Santo Domingo—from the days of slavery and the brutal Code Noir through struggle and revolution to freedom. McCloy provides a detailed account of the black population\u27s increasingly important place in the islands from early in the seventeenth century to 1960. Shelby T. McCloy, professor of history at the University of Kentucky, is the author of several books and articles on European history.https://uknowledge.uky.edu/upk_black_studies/1000/thumbnail.jp

The financial support of men of science in France c.1660-c.1800: A survey

The article presents a survey that examined the financial status of men who studied science in France from 1660-1800. During a period of 150 years, the status of scientists soared. The author noted that scientists were considered talented individuals and were given privileges at the Academie Royale des Sciences of Paris. In addition, they were granted state appointments, which included regular duties outside the academy; thereby, boosting their income. The survey also indicated that scientists perceived science as a cultural value and a potential vehicle for the country's development