In memoriam: David Burr, professor emeritus of history
David Burr, professor emeritus of history at Virginia Tech, passed away on Dec. 6. He was 91.
Burr joined the university’s history department in 1966, where he taught medieval history and also served as a humanities and interdisciplinary studies faculty member. He was fluent in six languages and published more than 100 scholarly articles and 10 book-length pieces in academic presses.
Some of his most well-known work was published after he retired from Virginia Tech in 2001. Among his influential books were “The Persecution of Peter Olivi,” “Olivi and Franciscan Poverty,” and “The Spiritual Franciscans,” for which he received numerous awards.
Burr was regarded as an expert on medieval Franciscan history. In 2005, he received the Franciscan Institute Medal, and in 2020, he was elected as a fellow of the Medieval Academy of America.
Burr also was active in his community. He volunteered in Catholic missions, taught English as a second language, walked dogs at the Humane Society, and enjoyed gardening, swimming, hiking, and kayaking.
Before coming to Virginia Tech, Burr was a minister with the United Church of Christ in New York and South Dakota. He earned a bachelor’s degree in English literature at Oberlin College, a Bachelor of Divinity at Union Theological Seminary, and a doctorate in church history at Duke University.
His wife, Annette Burr, an associate professor emerita at Virginia Tech, passed away last January.
A memorial service to honor Burr’s life will be held at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of the New River Valley on Saturday, Jan. 24, at 11 a.m. Read his full obituary.
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