30 Facts About Henry Hazlitt

Henry Stuart Hazlitt was an American journalist, economist, and philosopher known for his advocacy of free markets and classical liberal principles.

Over a career spanning more than seven decades, Hazlitt wrote extensively on business, economics, and public policy for prominent publications, including The Wall Street Journal, The Nation, The American Mercury, Newsweek, and The New York Times.

Henry Hazlitt is best known for his 1946 book, Economics in One Lesson, a work grounded in the Austrian school of economics and the importance of individual liberty in economic decision-making.

Henry Hazlitt was a strong proponent of sound monetary policy and a vocal critic of inflationary practices and government intervention in markets.

Beyond economics, Henry Hazlitt contributed to debates on philosophy and ethics, advocating for the moral underpinnings of a free society.

Henry Hazlitt served as an editorial board member of the libertarian journal The Freeman and was a founding member of the Foundation for Economic Education, one of the oldest free-market think tanks in the United States.

Henry Hazlitt was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and raised in Brooklyn, New York.

Henry Hazlitt was a collateral descendant of the British essayist William Hazlitt, but grew up in relative poverty, his father having died when Hazlitt was an infant.

Henry Hazlitt attended New York's City College, but left after only a short time to support his twice-widowed mother.

Henry Hazlitt started his career at The Wall Street Journal as secretary to the managing editor when he was still a teenager, and his interest in the field of economics began while working there.

Henry Hazlitt's studies led him to The Common Sense of Political Economy by Philip Wicksteed which, he later said, was his first "tremendous influence" in the subject.

Henry Hazlitt published his first book, Thinking as a Science at age 21.

Henry Hazlitt returned to New York, residing at Washington Square Park for many years.

Norton suggested he write an official biography of their author Bertrand Russell, Henry Hazlitt spent "a good deal of time," as he described it, with the famous philosopher.

In connection with his work for The Nation, Henry Hazlitt edited A Practical Program for America, a compilation of Great Depression policy considerations.

In 1933, Henry Hazlitt published The Anatomy of Criticism, an extended "trialogue" examining the nature of literary criticism and appreciation, regarded by some to be an early refutation of literary deconstruction.

From 1934 to 1946, Henry Hazlitt was the principal editorial writer on finance and economics for The New York Times, writing both a signed weekly column and most of the unsigned editorials on economics, producing a considerable volume of work.

Henry Hazlitt opposed the Bretton Woods agreement, primarily fearing the risk of inflation.

Author Tom Malone contends that Henry Hazlitt distinguished himself from other economists largely by his skill as a writer:.

Henry Hazlitt did this by focusing on principles, using practical examples, and writing in a direct and conversational style.

Unlike many other writers of his generation from the political right, Henry Hazlitt never experienced a period when he was a socialist or communist, or a significant change in his classical liberal political views.

Henry Hazlitt was the founding vice president of the Foundation for Economic Education, which acquired his large personal library in the 1980s.

Henry Hazlitt was one of the original members of the classical liberal Mont Pelerin Society in 1947.

Henry Hazlitt himself was on the masthead of National Review, either as a contributing editor or, later, as contributor, from its inception in 1955 until his death in 1993.

Differences existed between the journals: The Freeman under Henry Hazlitt was more secular and presented a wider range of foreign policy opinion than the later National Review.

Henry Hazlitt was awarded an honorary doctoral degree at Universidad Francisco Marroquin in Guatemala.

The Henry Hazlitt family was originally from England, although his paternal grandmother was from Ireland.

Henry Hazlitt's stepfather died in 1907, leaving Henry to support his mother and probably leading to the ambition that enabled him to work at the Wall Street Journal while he was still a teenager.

Henry Hazlitt died at the age of 98 in Fairfield, Connecticut.

Henry Hazlitt was a prolific writer, authoring 25 works in his lifetime.