John House

John William House (15 September 1919 – 31 January 1984) was a British geographer, who was Halford Mackinder Professor of Geography at the University of Oxford from 1974 to 1983.

Life House was born in 1919 and educated at Bradford Grammar School before studying geography at Jesus College, Oxford under the tuition of J. N. L. Baker. After service during the Second World War with the Intelligence Corps (leaving in 1946 with the rank of Major), he taught geography at King's College, Newcastle (then part of the University of Durham, but later Newcastle University) for 28 years; he was head of department from 1964 to 1974. He was appointed as the first Halford Mackinder Professor of Geography at the University of Oxford in 1974, a post he held until ill-health forced his retirement in 1983. He was also President of the Institute of British Geographers. House died on 31 January 1984.