John Lukacs, Historian and Author, Phoenixville, PA

John Adalbert Lukacs is a Hungarian-born American historian who has written more than 30 books including, The End of the Twentieth Century: And the End of the Modern Age which was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize. Mr. Lukacs was a professor of history at Chestnut Hill College in Philadelphia, PA from 1947 to 1994, and held the chair of the history department for 27 years. He has also served as a visiting professor at several universities.

In 1944, during the Second World War, Mr. Lukacs was forced to serve in a Hungarian labor battalion. Two years later, Mr. Lukacs fled to the United States escaping from the emergent Communist Bloc. Because of his command of the English language when arriving to the United States, Mr. Lukacs was able to teach courses to returning service members at Columbia University. But when he was offered a position at Chestnut Hill College, Mr. Lukacs found a permanent home, where he remained deeply rooted in the institution and surrounding community.