USA > New Hampshire > Merrimack County > New London > A centennial history, 1837-1937, Colby Academy, Colby Junior College > Part 18
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32
Nor did the coming of winter lessen enjoyment of the out-of-doors. It took more than high winds and low temperatures to dismay Colby students. In 1913 the girls organized a snowshoe club. Regardless of their amateur standing they promptly set out for Elkins. Tired muscles interrupted the order of their going, but they persevered and were entertained there by friends with supper, music and dancing. With spirits keyed to a pitch of excitement they spent some time coasting, and then rode back by way of Seaman's Road, serenading teachers and the boys in Colby Hall.
In a far different spirit John B. Ahern called one eve- ning upon one of the girls and, as the reporter told it,
"Ahern sat in the parlor, And he said unto the light, 'Either you or I, old fellow, Will be turned down tonight.'"
It was from such scenes as these that academy and town boys went off to the grueling experiences of the World War. As long as the United States had no part in the conflict raging in Europe the war seemed far away. The boys were having military drill once more, and the teach-
232
IN WAR TIME. 1912-1922
ers read the newspapers and improved the opportunity to kindle an interest in European geography and history. But when the United States became involved in the struggle, interest deepened at Colby Academy as else- where. Certain of the boys wanted to enlist and the draft drew others into its net. The routine of the school went on, but one and another student dropped out, and presently letters came from the training camps. By and by they bore a foreign postmark, and interest in the news from the front became intensified. A history of New London's part in the World War is not a part of this story, but the names of students and alumni graven upon the bronze tablet that adorns the wall of Colgate Hall beside the chapel door deserve to be recorded, as those were that commemorated Colby's participation in the Civil War.
Seven students and recent alumni paid the utmost measure of devotion, and their names are starred on the record with gold. They were Ensign John B. Ahern, class of '14, Robert A. Best of the same class, Maurice C. Smith, class of '13, Ray E. Cooper, class of '17, Louis Hartshorn, class of '07, Lieutenant Lee H. Knapp, M.D., class of '10, Neal Morgan, class of '12, and Robert C. Stimson, class of '14.
Those who served with honor and returned from field or camp were:
Lieutenant Charles H. Abbott
'09
Eliot S. Adams
'14
Myron R. Adams
'18
Corporal Fritz Ainsmith
'12
Fred R. Aldrich
'17
George C. Allen
'15
George W. Angus
'18
Jack R. Arnsel
'19
Ensign Roland H. Baker
'14
Lieutenant Benjamin B. Barker
'14
Clinton Barnard
'08
George M. Bartlett
'14
233
THE FIRST CENTURY OF COLBY
Carleton C. Barton
'16
Lieutenant Mason B. Barton '14
Grant G. Benson
'18
Chester A. Bentley
'16
Edwin C. Bernard
'19
Robert Blair
'17
George Blanchard
'16
Charles L. Bosdet
'12
Carleton R. Bradford
'17
William L. Bradford
'17
Harold D. Bryant
'17
Grace E. Burnham
'14
Albert C. Buswell
'14
Frank H. Butler
'16
Roy B. Byard
'13
George L. Campbell
'18
Reverend G. Stuart Campbell
'09
Reverend Eugene Carder
'03
Carroll C. Carkin
'16
Philip M. Chase
'16
Otto W. Christensen
'21
Irvin L. Cleveland
'09
Edgar T. Clough
14
William P. Clough, M.D.
1900
Harold B. Cobb
'13
Lawrence M. Cobb
'18
Harry L. Cochrane
'16
Lieutenant Carl L. Coleman
Herbert N. Cooper
'17
Lewis S. Cooper
'19
Wesley C. Couch
'10
Neal E. Crafts
'14
Captain Dura P. Crockett
'12
Henry P. Crowell
'16
Sergeant Milton F. Crowell
'15 ,
Charles M. Cummings
'16
George W. Currier
'18
Raymond H. Daley
'17
Corporal Robert E. Dame
'15
Lieutenant Stillman G. Davis, M.D. '06
Eva E. Dean
'11
Robert C. Dexter
'08
Professor W. N. Donovan
'87
234
,
IN WAR TIME. 1912-1922
Lieutenant Richard S. Doyle
'08
Captain E. C. Durgin '97
Guy E. Eaton '15
Norman R. Farnum
'17
Captain Paul M. Filmer
'08
Ensign Harold J. Follansbee
'14
Winthrop D. Follansbee
'14
Harold W. Ford
'17
James E. Fraher
'18
Lawrence G. Frost
'14
Otis E. Galloway
18
Robert L. Gardner
'11
Roland H. Gardner
'18
Myra Gay
'13
Paul B. Gay
'16
Louis Goodwin
'07
Walter F. Goodwin
'02
Charles A. Gordon
'14
Benjamin A. Greene
'06
Corporal A. Wilbur Greene
'10
Benjamin F. Greer, Jr.
'12
Lieutenant William Gronvoldt
'17
E. Stanley Guild
'17
Corporal Walter R. Guthrie
'18
Lieutenant Archelaus L. Hamblen
Ensign Milton L. Hard
'13
Philip L. Harriman
'13
Louise M. Hartshorn
'13
Lieutenant Ralph G. Hurlin
'08
Lieutenant William H. Hurlin
'12
Ralph Ilsley
'17
John F. Kelsey
'16
William H. Kelsey
'11
S. Bradford Kempton
'15
Lieutenant Lowell C. Kendrick
'08
Edward Kingsbury
'14
Lura G. Knowlton
'11
Matthew Kristl
'21
Gilbert G. LaBar
'17
Eric S. Laird
'19
Corporal Donald C. Lamson
'16
Lieutenant Perley W. Lane
'12
Lieutenant A. Stanley Llewellyn
'11
235
THE FIRST CENTURY OF COLBY
Sergeant M. Roy London
Carlton H. Long
'15
Lieutenant Kenneth A. Lord
'20
John H. Magee
Daniel M. McInnis
'17
J. Ernest Martin, Jr.
'13
George D. Mattheson
'18
Gerard L. McCoy
'15
Lieutenant Raymond A. Mellen
'17
Charles E. Merrill
'17
Harold M. Messer
'12
Sergeant Paul Metcalf
'13
Leo J. Meyer
'15
Corporal Robert Miller
'13
Wilbur L. Milliken
'16
Wilkie O. Moody
'13
Percy R. Moore
William E. Moore, D.D.S.
'15
Walter T. Moreland
'18
Bernard C. Morgan
'13
Sergeant Howard W. Morse
'14
L. Rogers Morse
'15
Harold F. Munroe
'19
H. Ashton Nelson
'19
Edward B. Nevin
'08
Edward C. Niles
'17
Charles F. O'Connor
'17
Captain J. Wesley Orcutt
'16
Charles P. Paige
'18
Gilbert E. Peakes
'18
J. Eliot Peckham
'82
J. Leroy Pineo
'13
George N. Pingree
'17
Robert N. Porter
'18
John N. Pressey
'17
Howard S. Ramsdell
'14
Ernest E. Redfern
'12
Reverend William Reid
'98
236
'16
Lieutenant John W. Martinson
'19
William J. McDonald
'17
Arnold H. Miller
'20
Arthur F. Newell
'17
John L. Pepper, M.D.
'12
IN WAR TIME. 1912-1922
Arthur H. Robbins '12
Don H. Robinson
, '19
Lieutenant Llewellyn H. Rockwell '14
Roy S. Rugg
'14
Paul F. Russell
'12
Frank H. Russo
'18
Daniel Sawyer
'11
Oscar Seidenberg
'12
Lieutenant John A. Shelburne
'15
Amos H. Shepard
'20
Sergeant James E. Shepard, 2nd
'10
Corporal Carl M. Small
'17
Richard Smiley
'15
Earl V. Smith
'17
Millard B. Smith
'16
Obadiah H. Smith
'12
Sylvester F. Smith
'17
Frederick C. Spooner
'13
Stillman G. Stanley
'18
Murray L. Stevens
'14
William W. Stickney
'21
Henry A. Stuart
'16
Tharon R. Tewksbury
'13
Cadet Gilbert M. Thompson
'12
Roland F. Thompson
'19
Lieutenant Harold E. Tingley
'14
David H. Tribou
'78
Edmund C. True
'19
Robert True
'15
Karl Van Densen
'20
Stuart B. Walther
'14
Paul Webster
'12
Harold L. Weld
'16
Lieutenant Sidney W. Wentworth
'13
William Whipple
'12
Roland J. White
'15
Gilbert N. Wiggins
'17
Roger W. Williams
'13
Winsor B. Williams
'18
Harry M. Woods
'15
Norman C. Woodward
'18
Lieutenant Grey H. Wyman
Benjamin Yerxa
'13
Bernard A. Young
'07
237
THE FIRST CENTURY OF COLBY
The war with its casualties brought vividly home to many persons and families the perennial problem of suffering and death and a questioning as to the meaning of life. Academy students could not escape such influ- ences. It was fortunate for them that the religious tra- ditions of the school had not lapsed. The wisest of men could not hope to solve the enigmas of existence, but men of faith could point out the grounds of belief in spiritual reality and the hope of immortality.
Colby Academy was the child of religious faith as much as of educational purpose. It received many a gift of prayer as well as money from members of churches who believed heartily in Christian education. The building of character was regarded as the goal of educa- tion, as well as the attainment of an intelligent mind. Parents sent their children to New London because there they would have thorough mental, moral and re- ligious training in the midst of healthful and beautiful surroundings. The selection of individual teachers al- ways took account of their character and religious af- filiations as well as their intellectual calibre and their teaching ability.
It was fortunate for the academy that it had close re- lations with the New London church, and that the minister of the church was willing to serve as student advisor and even as teacher. It was significant of the friendly relation that at the dedication of Colgate Hall three men who formerly had been pastors in New Lon- don were present and took part in the exercises of dedi- cation - Farren, Bullen, Sloat - besides Mr. Baird, the pastor of the church at the time.
With the coming of Reverend Ira M. Baird in 1912 the Bible was given a more prominent place in the cur- riculum of the academy. A four years' course of graded study was outlined, including the prophets of the Old Testament, the life of Christ, Paul and the apostolic
238
IN WAR TIME. 1912-1922
church, and the literary qualities of the Bible. The courses were planned admirably to give to the student a better understanding and appreciation of what the Bible really means to the intelligent people of Christian lands. Mr. Baird continued this instruction during his minis- try in New London until ill health compelled him to resign the pastorate of the church in 1921. He was be- loved throughout the community for his unwearied service and his unselfish devotion to the highest spiritual and moral ideals. He was followed in the pastorate by Reverend James K. Romeyn, who remained as minister and teacher of the biblical courses in the academy until 1928.
The pulse beat of the Young Men's Christian Associ- ation was quickened by visits from Dartmouth student deputations and from summer conferences that Colby students attended. On one occasion seven delegates from the Dartmouth Christian Association came to the hill, held religious meetings for the boys, and took an active part in the religious observances of Sunday. A number of the Colby boys went to conferences at Nashua and Dover, and came back with new inspiration. They took a more active part in the religious meetings held weekly in the academy. They organized a Loyal Workers' Club for daily Bible reading. They even sent a delegate or two to the annual summer conference at Silver Bay. From time to time students preparing for the ministry with a few others visited neighboring churches and brought new stimulus to them, as earlier students had aided by preaching at Scytheville, Otterville and North Sutton.
Academy students might not be conscious that they were any different because of these influences, but when they left the hill they carried away with them higher ideals and a more balanced judgment of what was good
239
THE FIRST CENTURY OF COLBY
and true and worth striving for. Colby was rich in that asset, though so often poor pecuniarily.
Ravaging as the war was it was three thousand miles away. Over there boys were becoming men over night, but in the academy at New London the students con- tinued to be absorbed by the days' routine. The boys at Colby Hall were up betimes in the morning, joining the girls at breakfast in the Colgate Hall dining-room. They gathered in the white chapel for daily devotions and scattered to the various classrooms according to their choice of courses. Class sessions lasted until late in the afternoon, and recreation followed out-of-doors until the supper hour. Lights gleamed through the evenings where brainy and dull scholars alike pored over text- books and chewed pencils to encourage the birth of ideas that they were expected to capture on paper.
Activities outside of the classroom were not dimin- ished during the war period. Athletics flourished. Foot- ball, baseball, basket ball, track and tennis all had their enthusiasts. Business managers of the teams arranged contests on their own and other diamonds and gridirons, and interscholastic track meets occurred intermittently. The girls enjoyed tennis and basket ball. All the stu- dents took part in unscheduled winter sports. The Loyalty Fund committee put the tennis courts into shape and built a hockey rink, but when it was flooded the water leaked out before it could freeze. This mat- tered little because there were frozen surfaces almost everywhere else. Nor did it greatly matter whether sport was organized or not. Students enjoyed a tramp to Lake- side or Pleasant Lake even when the mercury was low, and sap running in the woods always drew them to the sugar camps and a feast of maple syrup. Every year the trip to Mount Kearsarge was anticipated eagerly, and some of the thrills became translated into rhyme in the effort to praise adequately the school and its environs.
240
IN WAR TIME. 1912-1922
In 1914 George W. Parker wrote "Alma Mater," to be sung to the tune of "The Watch on the Rhine."
"Beneath Kearsarge's guardian eye, 'Mid granite hills that pierce the sky, New Hampshire's pride, so fair and free, Stands Colby, loved from sea to sea.
Chorus
Dear Alma Mater, thee we love, Old Colby fair, all names above. True to our school we'll be, we'll be to all time,
True to our school we'll be, we'll be to all time.
For years has shone her beacon light; For Truth her sons have led the fight;
Her mission high, to bless the race, Her spirit felt in every place.
Then let us cheer the Blue and White,
No colors give us such delight;
For often when the game was through These triumphed over rival hue.
And when we sing of victories won, Recount the deeds here nobly done,
Each loyal heart will feel a thrill To name 'the old school on the hill.'"
War drives for the sale of Liberty bonds and denomi- national campaigns for funds created a psychological at- titude favorable to financial drives, and the trustees of Colby Academy thought it a favorable time to attempt to add to the funds of the school. They therefore ap- pointed Reverend Charles L. Page, class of '80, as executive secretary, and in the next few years the assets were increased one hundred and nineteen thousand dol- lars. It seemed that it would be to the advantage of the school if five representatives of the New Hampshire Baptist Convention should sit in at the meetings of the trustees, as an advisory council. As a result the Board
241
THE FIRST CENTURY OF COLBY
of Promotion of the State Convention was invited to act in that capacity. Baptists were promoting their interests and institutions in all parts of the country and the acad- emy felt the ground swell of the movement. It was voted by the trustees of the academy that twelve-nineteenths of the amount which it was anticipated would benefit Colby Academy should be used for endowment and seven-nineteenths should be available for equipment.
In the generous mood of the time various personal benefactions were coming in. Mrs. Sarah E. White turned over to the academy two Liberty bonds of one thousand dollars each, and Mrs. Samuel W. Duncan pledged another bond. Both of these gifts were made conditional upon annuities to be paid by the academy. Marilla Z. Parker, class of '84, contributed one thousand dollars as a memorial fund on the same annuity basis. The income was to go to descendants of Frank J. Peaslee or to other students in need of assistance. J. E. Shepard presented a lot of land to the academy. The trustees raised eight hundred dollars among themselves for re- pairs on the buildings. Miss Mary Colgate gave twenty- five thousand dollars to be added to the Permanent Fund. The graduating class in 1918 contributed fifty dollars for chapel furnishings. M. D. Smith of Ardmore, Okla- homa, presented the school with a moving picture ma- chine. These gifts were indicative of the confidence that was being felt in the future of the school.
The trustees considered the possibility of providing a boys' dormitory and planned a gymnasium that should cost approximately forty thousand dollars. Miss Col- gate agreed to repair Colby Hall sufficiently so that it would last until a new dormitory might be provided. A possible way of solving that problem was to purchase the New London Tavern, which adjoined the property of the academy. It was felt highly desirable to control the Tavern property, and it was voted to find out the
242
IN WAR TIME. 1912-1922
cost of putting it into shape for a boys' dormitory. It was thought best to buy the property, even if it should be leased for a hotel. Miss Colgate contributed five thousand dollars for the purpose, one thousand was appropriated from the agricultural fund, and for eight thousand dollars the title was transferred. It was neces- sary to mortgage the property for repairs. It was voted by the Board that a contract be made with architects to plot both campuses showing the location and drawings for new buildings. The remainder of the agricultural fund was spent for shrubbery to adorn Colgate Hall.
Mr. Wellman resigned his position of headmaster in 1919. During his administration of fourteen years the attendance of students had increased, the faculty had been enlarged, a well-equipped new building had been erected, and the available funds of the institution were larger. Colby Academy had gained new friends and a wider acquaintance. Colby could look forward with confidence into the future, but it must maintain its standards and establish firmly its financial foundations.
It was important that the right man should be chosen as headmaster for the forward movement that was ex- pected. An attempt was made to persuade Mr. Mckean to return to New London. The trustees realized in the perspective of the years how valuable his leadership of the academy had been and they elected him headmaster at a salary of three thousand dollars. He was too happy at Union College to be disturbed and therefore declined. Then Gaius H. Barrett was elected president. Mr. Bar- rett had been a teacher at Mount Hermon School, his own alma mater, for seven years and had been in Young Men's Christian Association service at Camp Devens during the World War.
The faculty that Mr. Barrett gathered about himself included Julia M. Gay, a graduate of Colby Academy in the class of '90. She had been preceptress and Latin
243
THE FIRST CENTURY OF COLBY
teacher for a number of years. The men teachers were newcomers and they did not remain long. Noel D. God- frey was instructor in English and history, E. Kenneth Wilson set the problems in mathematics, and Bradbury Bagley was responsible for the sciences. Nelson Laird, a recent graduate of the academy, was retained for his contribution to athletics. Expert coaching was becom- ing desirable to meet rival teams. Olive D. Sylvester was busy with Latin, French, and Spanish classes, and Ruth Goodwin took care of the Commercial Department. With nearly two hundred students in attendance it was a heavy assignment for one woman to take care of the department, but tuition fees still were relatively low and an insufficient endowment could not finance a large fac- ulty. Ethel G. Taylor remained in her position as music teacher for four years. Mildred McKenzie gave expert instruction on the violin, and Florence R. Webster took care of the domestic arts. An interesting event was the return to the faculty of James P. Kelley, an alumnus of the class of '71, who had taught two years on the hill and then had gone to other schools in Connecticut for a period of twenty-seven years. His second stay lasted only a year, and most of the other instructors were birds of passage.
A number of trustee members who are still serving on the Board of Trustees had been on the Board long enough to be active leaders. Josiah E. Fernald, Concord banker and treasurer after the resignation of Nahum F. Greenwood, had served through the period of trial since 1893. Reverend Charles L. Page of Boston, class of '80, had been on the Board since 1897 with important service in office and on committees. Dr. William P. Houston, class of '86, had served the same length of time, and was to be secretary of the Board for a long term. Professor Winfred N. Donovan, class of '87, had been a member since 1905 and had served as chairman of the building
244
IN WAR TIME. 1912-1922
committee. In the same year Mrs. Mary B. Macomber, class of '85, had been elected, enjoying the distinction of being the first woman to be chosen to that position. Two years later her brother, Wilfred E. Burpee, of the class of '82, shared the responsibility of representing the family as well as the alumni, and William C. Colby was added to the Board the same year.
In the decade 1912-21 Mrs. Gula G. Plummer, a former student at Colby and devoted to its interests, took her seat with Mrs. Macomber in the women's sec- tion. They set a pace in activity that was a challenge to the male members of the Board. Dr. Edwin P. Stickney, class of '86, and Reverend Daniel S. Jenks, the secretary of the New Hampshire Baptist Convention, were elected in the same year; in the year following Reverend Wil- liam A. Hill, class of '98, and Ernest G. Hapgood, class of '97, both experts in education, and Horace C. Stanley of New London, class of 1901, were added to the Board. It was plain that the alumni were represented abun- dantly by this time. Fred S. Heath of Concord was chosen a member in 1918 and the next year succeeded to the responsibility of the treasurer of the Board, a position he held until his death in 1937. Reverend William Reid, Rhode Island secretary of the Baptists and a Colby alumnus of the class of '98, was elected in 1921. All of these have served nobly in the difficult crises of academy and college. When the second decade of the century ended, buildings and equipment were valued at two hundred thousand dollars, while endow- ment and scholarship funds totaled one hundred and twenty-five thousand. One hundred and eighty names were on the roll of students. Forty boys were being housed in Colby Hall and almost as many more in the Heidelberg, while most of the girls were cared for in Colgate Hall.
The school was active as a hive of bees. There were
245
THE FIRST CENTURY OF COLBY
organizations new and old. The Colby Academy As- sembly was an association of all the students. It was intended as a means of preserving a democratic spirit, encouraging school loyalty, and correlating and con- trolling all student activities. The meeting of the As- sembly provided an opportunity to learn principles of parliamentary practice and self-government, and lec- tures and practical talks supplied guidance and inspira- tion.
In place of the former literary organizations the boys formed three new fraternities. Two of them were digni- fied by Greek letter designations, Upsilon Alpha Omi- cron and Sigma Kappa Pi, the latter lasting only a short time. The third indicated its desire for longevity by taking the name of Cat-o'-Nine-Tails. Musical organi- zations flourished. Quartettes, glee clubs, and an orches- tra provided an outlet for energy, and the Colby Musi- cal Club was formed in order to encourage the study of modern musicians and of conditions in the current musical world. The club produced a publication called The Musical Alliance.
A Radio Club capitalized the increasing interest in that instrument, the Colby Camera Club brought to- gether the photographers, and the Colby Outing Club encouraged out-of-door activity. It engaged zealously in winter sports, held a mid-winter carnival with skating, skiing, snowshoeing, and ice hockey events.
Mr. Barrett resigned the position of headmaster in 1922. The course ahead for the school appeared to promise smooth sailing for the storm-tossed ship, but there were warnings out from the bureau of public opin- ion. There was rising criticism against the old custom of co-education in boarding schools, although in high schools boys and girls studied and recited in the same classrooms. One and another academy was considering and adopting a new policy. The Colby trustees were
246
IN WAR TIME. 1912-1922
alive to the situation and spent some time discussing it. Considerable inclination appeared to make the old acad- emy a school for boys, but for the time at least the de- cision was against change. The future might shed more light on the situation.
247
XI TRANSITION TIME. 1922-1928
G OLDEN ROD and purple aster bloomed by the roadside when students returned to the hill in the autumn of 1922 as they had done every fall since the New London pioneers made their first roads. They rode up from Potter Place in a motor bus instead of a horse-drawn stage. The same stone walls bordered the highway. The same broad fields sloped away at Crockett's Corner and above. The same first glimpse of Sunapee Mountain appeared behind the shoulder of King Hill and the first whiff of mountain air blew from the west. Over the crest of Colby Hill past Burpee's and Apple Tree Cottage and the Colby Mansion the bus swung into the academy drive and came to a halt in front of Colgate Hall.
Jovial greetings met old acquaintances from students who had arrived already. A cordial welcome was ready for those who had not been in school before. Then the bus resumed its course to the highway and conveyed the boys to their more modest quarters on the lower campus. Soon unaccustomed feet were trying to adjust themselves to the uneven surface of the stone flagged sidewalk, and post office and corner store became a riot of noise and color. New London had scarcely said goodbye to her summer visitors, when her hand must be extended in welcome to the Colby boys and girls. Between the two the town never could really settle down and go to sleep.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.