USA > Maine > History of the Baptists in Maine > Part 37
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Later, by the will of Dea. Josiah W. Cook of Cam- bridge, Mass., upwards of $41,000 came to Hebron Acad- emy, a part of which was used to reimburse the college for advances made on income account, about $19,000 were added to the Hebron endowment fund, and the rest was used in removing and remodeling the old chapel so as to give the academy a gymnasium. Later a part of this building was devoted to dormitory purposes for boys.
Sturtevant Hall was dedicated June 23, 1891. Judge Bonney, president of the board of trustees, presided. Rev. A. K. P. Small, D. D., of Portland, a former principal of the academy, delivered an address in the new assembly hall, vindicating for the academy its place in our system
STURTEVANT HALL, HEBRON ACADEMY.
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of education and closing with these impressive words : "I have glanced at the catalogue of 1850, -faded reminder of my first acquaintance here. Of that entire board of trus- tees and examining committee one name alone represents a living one on earth ; he retired from service in a western State. The name of my brother Richardson1 represents the only living one associated with me on the board of instruction. Of those one hundred students and the honored citizens who then frequented these rural paths, how large a proportion have graduated from earth. Of the heads of families in all these dwellings scarcely one remains." The prayer of dedication was offered by Rev. Sumner Estes of Sanford. At a meeting in the afternoon there were addresses by Hon. George B. Barrows of Frye- burg, a grandson of Dea. William Barrows, Rev. L. S. Tripp, Hon. George F. Emery, Hon. Mark H. Dunnell, Principal J. F. Moody, Principal Geo. C. Purington, Presi- dent A. W. Small of Colby, Rev. Joseph Ricker, D. D., and Principal W. E. Sargent. In connection with these addresses, Harry E. Hamilton, of the graduating class, delivered his graduating oration on "The Great Debt we Owe to Hebron Academy," and the exercises were closed with the singing of a hymn written for the occasion by Rev. S. F. Smith, D. D., the author of "My country, 'tis of thee."
When the Hebron church was securing funds for the improvements in its edifice made in 1892, Miss Sarah B. Barrows, a missionary in Burma, sent a gift of $100 in memory of her father and mother, Rev. and Mrs. Allen Barrows, who were at one time members of this church. At Judge Bonney's suggestion this was made a student's pew fund, the income to be paid to the church in aid of its work. This fund has been increased from time to time and now amounts to about $600.
By the will of Mrs. W. E. Wording of Grand Forks, North Dakota, who died in Boston, Jan. 24, 1890, there
1 Rev. S. D. Richardson, who died in Portland, March 20, 1904.
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came at length $5,000 to the academy, and by the will of Mrs. Ruth H. Roberts of Rollinsford, N. H., who died Feb. 5, 1901, a legacy of $2,000 came to the academy, to be known as the Hiram R. and Ruth Roberts Scholarship Fund, the income to be used for needy students.
Mr. B. F. Sturtevant of Jamaica Plain, Mass., died before the completion of Sturtevant Hall. In 1898 his widow, Mrs. Phebe R. Sturtevant, who had taken a deep interest in the work of the academy, visiting it from time to time, made known her purpose to erect at Hebron a dormitory for girls. Plans were prepared in accordance with her suggestion, and the work of construction was soon commenced, Mrs. Sturtevant's only requirement being that the work should be done in the most thorough, substantial manner. The building was completed in the summer of 1900, and with its furnishings cost about $84,000. It is one of the best edifices of its kind in New England. The dedication occurred June 23, 1900, and the dedicatory address was by Mrs. Sturtevant's pastor, Rev. Howard B. Grose of Jamaica Plain, Mass. The keys of the building, in Mrs. Sturtevant's behalf, were presented to Principal Sargent by Mrs. Sturtevant's son-in-law, Mr. E. N. Foss. Mr. Sargent made a fitting response. The other speakers were Miss Ella B. Russell, of the graduat- ing class, Mr. W. W. Stetson, State superintendent of schools, Rev. G. M. P. King, D. D., Miss Anna Barrows, a great granddaughter of Dea. William Barrows, Rev. H. S. Burrage, D. D., President Nathaniel Butler of Colby College, Miss Grace Mathews, dean of the Women's Col- lege of Colby, and Congressman Littlefield.
Mrs. Sturtevant continued to manifest a deep inter- est in the academy, and when she died, April 17, 1903, she bequeathed to the institution the munificent sum of $150,000.1 Hebron Academy, therefore, is now the best
1 In the Hebron Semester for March, 1904, Principal Sargent pays a beautiful tribute to Mrs. Sturtevant's memory. In it he says : "Some say Sturtevant Home is her monu- ment. As I knew her, I do not think she so regarded it. It was a part, an essential part. Her remarkable gift of $150,000 in her will is her best testimony that she had a very clear vision of her monument, and that a school equipped and endowed."
MRS. PHEBE R. STURTEVANT.
F
STURTEVANT HOME, HEBRON ACADEMY.
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endowed of our four Baptist academies in Maine. It has had an honorable history for one hundred years. Wor- thily that history was celebrated June 16, 1904, when an oration was delivered by Hon. John D. Long. Other speakers emphasized the value of such an institution among the Oxford hills, and paid a just tribute of praise to the present principal of the academy, Mr. W. E. Sar- gent. The academy enters upon a new century of service better equipped than at any other period in its history, and with financial resources ample for its present needs.
COBURN CLASSICAL INSTITUTE.
The institute was founded in 1829, and was then known, and for many years afterward, as Waterville Academy. Dr. Chaplin, who early saw the necessity of such a school as a preparatory school for the college, solicited funds for the erection of a building, and the land on which it stood was the gift of Hon. Timothy Boutelle. The first principal of the academy was Mr. Henry W. Paine, then a senior in the college and eighteen years old, afterwards one of the leading members of the Boston bar. The academy was opened in August, 1829. Mr. Paine held the principalship only a few months, and was succeeded by Mr. Robert W. Wood, who conducted the school during the remainder of the year. He was followed by Mr. George I. Chace, a graduate of Brown University in 1830. His term of ser- vice was only nine months, as he was recalled to Brown, where he served the college as professor for many years, and for a while he was acting president. In August, 1831, Mr. Henry Paine, a graduate of Waterville College, class of 1823, became principal, and remained in the position ยท five years. A catalogue for the year 1834 shows that there were connected with the academy in that year 205 students, of whom 37 in the second term were pursuing the classical course.
Among those who followed Mr. Paine in the principalship were - Freeman, Moses Burbank, Lorenzo B. Allen, Charles R. Train and Nathaniel G. Rogers, a nephew of
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Hon. Timothy Boutelle. Mr. Allen, who was an excellent classical scholar, afterward entered upon the work of the Christian ministry in Maine, removed to the West and was president of Burlington University, at Burling- ton, Iowa. Mr. Train, a graduate of Brown University, was a son of Rev. Arthur Train of Framingham, Mass., and became a prominent lawyer in Boston and attorney- general of Massachusetts. Lack of financial resources and consequent frequent changes in the principalship proved disastrous, and in 1839 the academy was closed, and so remained for two years. But the importance of the acad- emy to the college became only the more evident in this time. ; In 1841, the academy was re-opened, and Mr. Charles H. Wheeler, then a student in the college, was made principal.
In the following winter, Feb. 12, 1842, an act of incor- poration was obtained from the Legislature, and Samuel Plaisted, Stephen Stark, Zebulon Sanger, Edwin Noyes, Harrison A. Smith, David Garland, Amasa Dingley, John- son Williams, Stephen Thayer, and Samuel Taylor were made a board of trustees, to "take and hold by gift, grant or otherwise, any real or personal estate, the annual income of which shall not exceed fifteen hundred dollars for the purpose of promoting piety and morality, and for the instruction of youth in such languages, arts and sciences as the said trustees may direct."
In the latter part of 1842, Nathaniel Butler, a graduate of the college, class of 1842, was principal of the academy. But in the fall of 1843, the services of James H. Hanson were secured. A graduate of Waterville College, class of 1842, he had taught three terms in the town of Hampden, and was ready for just such an enterprise as now offered. The school opened with five students, but by "his exact scholarship, his rare administrative ability, his ever burn- ing enthusiasm and prodigious capacity for hard work," Mr. Hanson soon made "this feeble, languishing school" "into a large and prosperous seminary,"1 though there
1 Address of William Mathews, LL. D., at the Semi-Centennial of Coburn Classical Institute.
WATERVILLE CLASSICAL INSTITUTE.
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were many discouragements. The number of students steadily increased, additional instructors were secured, but the remuneration was wholly inadequate, and there was no money for expenditure in repairs and improvements except what was furnished by the principal from his own scanty income. In the spring of 1854, having carried his heavy burden of care and responsibility twelve years, Mr. Hanson resigned, and accepted the principalship of the High School in Eastport.
Mr. George B. Gow, a graduate of the college, class of 1852, who had been associated with Mr. Hanson in the work of the school, became his successor, and remained until the summer of 1855. Mr. James T. Bradbury, a graduate of the college, class of 1855, held the principal- ship until the winter of 1857, when he was succeeded by Mr. Isaac S. Hamblen, who entered upon his duties while in his senior year in the college, and retained the princi- palship until the spring term of 1861. This was a period of prosperity. Mr. Hamblen possessed qualities of head and heart that admirably qualified him for the position. The students loved him. The average attendance during his principalship was 218, and 49 students were prepared by him for college ; but Mr. Hamblen's health became impaired by his untiring labors, and he was at length com- pelled to resign, greatly to the regret of Dr. Champlin and others interested in the welfare of the academy.
Several graduates of the college, Ransom Norton, Ran- dall E. Jones, John W. Lamb and Augustus D. Small, car- ried the academy through the eventful years of the Civil War. But with the return of peace, and inspired by the new conditions at the college because of its increased financial resources, Dr. Champlin turned his attention anew to the academy, which in its prosperous days had furnished so many students for the college. Mr. Hanson had removed from Eastport to Portland, where he became principal of the High School. For two years he had been at the head of a private school for boys. Very naturally Dr. Champlin attempted to secure Mr. Hanson's services
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as principal of the academy, and in this he was success- ful. Mr. Hanson returned to Waterville, bringing "with him all the prestige of his former success as principal of the academy, all his old energy, fidelity and almost unpar- alelled power of endurance, together with still greater accumulations of learning and experience and a new and wider fame as the author of most valuable and extensively used commentaries of the Latin text-books of the college preparatory course." 1
The real estate of the academy was held by the college. The surviving trustees of the academy now made over their trusts to the college, and the Waterville Acad- emy became the Waterville Classical Institute. Students in increasing numbers entered the institute. The attend- ance in 1865-6 was 272, the largest number connected with the school in any year in its history thus far, except in 1852-3, when the number was 308. In 1869, the young ladies' collegiate department was added, and an act of the Legislature was obtained authorizing the institute to "prescribe a course of study for young ladies equivalent to that of any female college in New England," and to "confer upon all who shall satisfactorily complete such course the collegiate honors and degrees that are gen- erally granted by female colleges." In accordance with this authorization a three years' course of study was arranged, which was extended in the following year to four years, and upon those who completed the course the degree of Baccalaureate of Letters was conferred.
From year to year the number of students in the college preparatory classes increased. But the building in which the work of the institute was performed was wholly inad- equate for the uses of the enlarged body of students. There was need also of an endowment in order to meet the increasing expenses of the institute. The endow- ment came with ex-Governor Coburn's munificent gift of $50,000, and a suitable building was erected in 1883 by the same generous giver, in memory of Stephen Coburn
1 Rev. George B. Gow, D. D., semi-centennial address.
COBURN CLASSICAL INSTITUTE, WATERVILLE.
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and Charles M. Coburn, the donor's brother and nephew. In 1888, the name of the Waterville Classical Institute was changed to the Coburn Classical Institute, in recognition of these large benefactions.
Though Dr. Hanson's burdens were somewhat lightened in the new order of things at the institute, he still carried heavy burdens, "working more hours than most younger men would have found possible, meeting his classes in his own study when too weak to meet them in the class room, and in his chamber when too weak for that. He wanted to die in the harness."1 And he did. Only three days separated his school work and the close of his life here. He died April 24, 1894, aged seventy-seven years.
Mr. Franklin W. Johnson, a graduate of Colby, class of 1891, was made Dr. Hanson's successor, and under his efficient management the institute has continued in its career of enlarged usefulness. In 1896, in consequence of the success of the opening of the college to women, the ladies' collegiate department was discontinued. Until 1901 the institute remained under the control of the trus- tees of the college, but in 1901, by an act of the Legisla- ture, the affairs of the institute were placed under the care of a separate board.
The seventy-fifth anniversary of the institute was fit- tingly celebrated June 24, 1904. An oration was delivered by Leslie C. Cornish, Esq., class of 1871. This was fol- lowed with a poem by Miss Louise H. Coburn, class of 1873; historical reminiscences by Dr. William Mathews, class of 1831, and a history of the institute by Edwin C. Whittemore, D. D., class of 1875.
RICKER CLASSICAL INSTITUTE.
Ricker Classical Institute was incorporated as Houl- ton Academy in 1847. July 30, 1847, the Legislature of Maine conveyed to the trustees of the academy one-half township of land (14, Range 3), on condition that a suit- able building should be erected and a school established
' President B. L. Whitman in an address at Dr. Hanson's funeral.
1
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before October, 1849. Land was purchased and a build- ing erected in 1848, and the school was opened in the fall of the same year, with Mr. Milton Welch as principal. The second story of the school building was used as a court room until the present court house was built. In August, 1868, steps were taken with reference to the erec- tion of a building better adapted to the growing needs of the school, and this new building was completed in 1870, at a cost of about $6,500. A course of study for three years was then established.
In the prosecution of his work as secretary of the Maine Baptist Missionary Convention, Rev. Joseph Ricker, D. D., visited Houlton for the first time in March, 1872. On the day he left Bangor a severe snow storm set in, and by the time the train reached Danforth, eighty-nine miles from Bangor, the road was blocked and it was impossible to proceed further. At Danforth he met Judge Dicker- son of Belfast, who was returning from a session of the Supreme Court in Houlton, and, like Dr. Ricker, was unable to proceed on his journey on account of the storm. Judge Dickerson was an old college friend of Dr. Ricker, and in their conversation while thus detained Judge Dick- erson referred to Houlton Academy, which was without endowment and poorly equipped for its work, and sug- gested that it might be made one of Colby's preparatory schools. Judge Dickerson said that while in Houlton he talked concerning the matter with Rev. Charles G. Porter, pastor of the Baptist church, and Mr. Porter had assured him that the trustees of the academy would transfer its property to Colby University if the Baptists of Maine would give it an endowment of $25,000.
After his arrival in Houlton, Dr. Ricker called ,upon J. C. Madigan, Esq., president of the board of trustees of Houlton Academy, and the matter was still further con- sidered. Terms of agreement in reference to the trans- fer were drawn up, and a memorandum made of various points that became a basis of subsequent negotiations. Dr. Ricker later presented the matter to the trustees of
WORDING HALL, RICKER CLASSICAL INSTITUTE, HOULTON.
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Colby, and having impressed his colleagues on the board with the desirability of making Houlton Academy one of the preparatory schools of the college, he secured the appointment of a committee to proceed to Houlton for further negotiations. These at length were brought to a successful termination, and Houlton Academy came under the control of the Baptists of Maine.
From 1875 to 1885 the academy had been under the intelligent supervision of Mr. W. S. Knowlton. In this time the academy building was repaired, and there was a growing interest in the institution. In the autumn of 1885, Mr. A. M. Thomas became principal. Under his leadership the institute rapidly took its place as the lead- ing educational force in Aroostook County.
Dr. Ricker's interest in Houlton Academy did not end with the transfer of the property. He saw the possibili- ties of the academy as an educational influence in the northeastern part of the State. To devise large things for it, with these possibilities in view, was with him a pressing duty. He gave five thousand dollars toward its endowment. He also contributed liberally for the pur- chase of land adjacent to the academy lot, and needed for its purposes. Such deep, abiding interest in the institu- tion was deemed worthy of recognition by the trustees of Colby, and in 1887 they asked the Legislature of the State to change the name of Houlton Academy to Ricker Classi- cal Institute. This was done in January, 1888.
Dr. Ricker interested others also in the academy, among them Mrs. Catherine L. Wording of Grand Forks, North Dakota, and Mrs. Wording gave to the trustees of the college $30,000, to be expended in the erection of a new academy building. This building, known as Word- ing Hall,1 was completed in the summer of 1888. In order to furnish a site for the new edifice the former academy building was removed.
1 The building Mrs. Wording made a memorial of her late husband, Hon. W. E. Word- ing, who died in Fargo, No. Dakota, Jan. 22, 1886. He was a native of Castine, Me., and was graduated at Waterville College in 1836. For awhile he was engaged in teaching,
29
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Mrs. Wording was present at the dedication of the building, which occurred on June 28, 1888. Mr. Moses Giddings of Bangor, chairman of the building committee, presented the keys of the building to the principal of the institute, Mr. A. M. Thomas, who became principal of the academy in 1885. The dedicatory address was delivered by President Pepper of Colby University, who considered "The Aim of our Educational System and the Place of the Academy in the Accomplishment of this Aim."
In 1868 the Legislature of Maine appropriated $2,000 in aid of Houlton Academy, and the money was deposited with the State treasurer as a trust fund. Since that time the academy has received from the treasurer $120 annu- ally as the income of this fund.
Principal Thomas resigned his position as the head of the institute in 1901. Under his leadership the school had greatly prospered, and his resignation was the occasion of great regret on the part of the students and friends of the institute. He was succeeded by Mr. J. O. Wellman, Colby, class of 1898. Under his direction the institute has continued to prosper, and is exerting a strong educational influence throughout Aroostook County.
HIGGINS CLASSICAL INSTITUTE.
At the meeting of the Penobscot Association held in Etna, Sept. 9 and 10, 1835, this resolution was adopted : "That an academy of a high character ought to be estab- lished in this county under the patronage of this associa- tion, and that a committee be appointed for that purpose." The appointment of a committee was made, and the com- mittee was requested to report to the association at its next annual meeting. Several meetings were held by this
then he studied law and went west. For successive terms he was judge of probate for the county of Racine, Wis. During the Civil War he was made United States Tax Com- missioner in South Carolina. He never forgot the struggles through which he passed in obtaining an education, especially in his preparatory course, and it was on this account, doubtless, that Mrs. Wording was largely influenced in the erection of this memorial of her husband.
MRS. CATHERINE L. WORDING.
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committee, the first at Levant, March 11, 1836, at which it was decided to send a circular letter to the several towns within the limits of the association, making such inqui- ries as the price and facilities for student board, cost of building materials, and the amount of aid which might be afforded to the academy. After the answers to these inquiries were received, other meetings were held, and June 21, 1836, after much deliberation with reference to these replies, it was decided to locate the academy in Charleston, "near the Baptist meeting-house." Mr. N. G. Norcross of Bangor offered a site for the proposed acad- emy, and with friends of the enterprise in Charleston added a subscription of $3,500. The erection of an acad- emy building, 48 feet by 34, and two stories in height, was commenced, with the expectation that it would be com- pleted by May, 1837. At the meeting of the Penobscot Association in Dexter, Sept. 13, 14 and 15, 1836, a board of trustees was appointed, consisting of one member from each church in the association, and Rev. O. Briggs was appointed an agent to solicit financial aid. An act of incorporation was secured. At the meeting of the asso- ciation in Hampden, Sept. 20 and 21, 1837, the trustees reported the completion of the academy building. A debt of about $1,000 had been contracted in its erection, and this proved a troublesome burden by reason of the general financial depression in the country at that time. "You have promised a school of high order," said the trustees in their report to the association in 1837, "and to do this a personal interest should be felt by every member of the churches in the association ; it should be relieved from all pecuniary embarrassment at once. An ample and well- selected school apparatus is now wanted, is indispensable, and it is hoped that means will be provided to obtain it without delay."
At that time the movement with reference to the estab- lishment of a Baptist Theological Institution in Maine was in progress, and the following resolution was adopted : "That should the Maine Baptist Theological Association
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be disposed to make Charleston the place of location for their theological school, we would, with the assent of the Penobscot Association, surrender to their use and pur- pose our charter and rights under it, upon condition that an academy school of a high order shall be sustained, not sectarian in the instruction, but open to all classes and denominations on like terms and conditions ; provided also it can be done consistently with our charter." It appears that this invitation was accepted, and the theo- logical school for a short time was in session at Charles- ton, but the school was soon transferred to Thomaston for reasons regarded as forceful by all the friends of the enterprise.1
The academy at Charleston was opened in the fall of 1837, with about seventy-five scholars and Samuel Silsbee as principal. He was followed a year later by Elisha M. Thurston, a graduate of Waterville College, class of 1838. Mr. Thurston served the academy as principal six years, and with entire satisfaction to the friends of the academy. Students came in gratifying numbers from the surround- ing country, and even from a distance. Among the teach- ers who followed Mr. Thurston were the late Hon. A. H. Briggs of Boston, Samuel L. Caldwell, afterward president of Vassar College, and Prof. Calvin Bickford.
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