Eric Kohler

Eric Louis Kohler (1892–1976) was an American accountant, the author of a widely used dictionary of accounting.

Life and work Kohler was born on July 9, 1892, in Owosso, Michigan. He did his undergraduate studies at the University of Michigan, graduating in 1914, and went on to earn a master's degree from Northwestern University. He then worked at Arthur Andersen from 1915 to 1920 (interrupted by a stint in the Army Quartermaster Corps during World War I). From 1922 to 1928 he held a faculty position at Northwestern, while also working with Paul W. Pettengill for their own accounting firm, Kohler, Pettengill & Co. From 1935 to 1937 he worked again for Arthur Andersen.

During this time, Kohler was the author or co-author of several books on accounting, including Accounting Principles Underlying Federal Income Taxes, Principles of Auditing, and Accounting for Business Executives. He was president of the American Accounting Association in 1936, a role he would reprise in 1946, and editor of The Accounting Review from 1928 until 1942.

Kohler died, unmarried, on February 20, 1976.

Selected publications Kohler published a number of books and over 100 articles. Books, a selection: Kohler, Eric. Accounting Principles Underlying Federal Income Taxes, 1924. Kohler, Eric and Paul W. Pettengill. Principles of Auditing. 1924. Kohler, Eric and Paul L. Morrison. Principles of Accounting. 1926. Kohler, Eric. Accounting for Business Executives, 1927. Kohler, Eric. Advanced Accounting Problems and Solutions to Advanced Accounting Problems, 1939. Kohler, Eric. Auditing, An Introduction to the Work of the Public Accountant. 1947. Kohler, Eric. A Dictionary for Accountants, 1952. Kohler, Eric and Howard W. Wright. Accounting in the Federal Government, 1956. Kohler, Eric. Accounting for Management, 1965.