Daniel Albert Baugh

Daniel A. Baugh, born July 10, 1931 in Philadelphia, PA, passed away peacefully at his home in Williamsburg, Virginia on February 9, 2024. Dr. Baugh was a British history professor specializing in 18th century maritime, naval and geopolitical issues, and was considered “the definitive historian" of British naval administration.

He grew up in walking distance to the University of Pennsylvania where his father, Albert C. Baugh, taught for 49 years. His mother, Nita S. Baugh, had a doctorate of her own (Bryn Mawr 1935), so the foundations were there for young Dan to excel academically and he more than met the challenge. After graduating from Episcopal Academy (PA) in 1949, he received both his BA (Class of '53) and his Masters from Penn. He was voted President of his freshman class and of his Beta Theta Phi fraternity. He was a member of Penn’s Mask & Wig club (a traveling musical/comedy troupe) and joined the wrestling team. But for all those accomplishments at Penn, his happiest and proudest one, which he would proclaim to one and all, was to find and marry the love of his life, Carol Allen (Penn Class of 1955).

After graduating in 1954, he was commissioned into the US Navy and served 3 years on the destroyer USS Wilkinson, rising to the rank of lieutenant. He received his PhD from the University of Cambridge in England (1961) where all 3 of his children were born. He was appointed Assistant Professor at Princeton University, then moved to Cornell 8 years later where he continued to teach British history until he retired in 1998. He wrote 2 major books (British Naval Administration in the Age of Walpole, published in 1965, and The Global Seven Years War 1754-1763: Britain and France in a Great Power Contest in 2011) and countless other journals and periodicals.

He was the recipient of the Caird Medal from the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich England in 2011 which is awarded annually to "an individual who has done conspicuously important work in the field of the Museum's interests and is of a nature which involves communicating with the public."

He was deeply devoted to his family, passing on to them his love of history, literature, music (he was an accomplished pianist), poetry, Broadway and golf. Nothing made him happier than an afternoon spent playing the front 9 at Duck Woods Country Club (OBX) with his family where he summered for almost 5 decades. He was a lifelong Phillies fan and a lover of dogs. His wife Carol bred labradors and at one time 7 shared their home. Dan loved nothing more than having one of them snuggled up on the sofa next to him as he read a book plucked from his home library which grew to over 4,600 books, a source of great pride and satisfaction for him.

Dan is survived by his beloved wife of 69 years, Carol Baugh; his 3 children, Nancy Fortunel, Charles Baugh, and John Baugh; his 10 grandchildren, and his 4 great-grandchildren. He lost his older brother Bill in 1980. He also graduated from Episcopal and Penn, and served in the Navy, and we lost him much too soon.

Dan’s family will host a funeral service for him on Saturday, Feb. 17, 2024 at 1pm. The service will be held at Nelsen Funeral Home in Williamsburg, VA, followed by a reception.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to www.seeingeye.org, an organization that provides dog services for the blind.