USA > Ohio > Greene County > History of Greene County, together with historic notes on the northwest and the state of Ohio > Part 66
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Subsequently, on the opposite side of the street which bounds the college lot on the north, a dwelling was erected for the presi- dent. This is a fine brick building, three stories high.
The corner-stone of the main building was laid, with due cere-
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monies, June 23, 1852. Judge Probasco, of Lebanon, delivered the chief address, and was followed by Dr. J. R. Freese, of Phila- delphia. The north hall was finished, and Antioch Hall, all but the towers, and were opened for occupation . October 5, 1853. The south hall, and the president's house were built during the follow- ing year, and were ready for occupation September, 1854. The total costs of the buildings were finally estimated at $120,000. At present prices of labor and material, they would cost far more.
Incorporation .- A legal incorporation was effected May 14, 1852, under the general laws of Ohio. The corporators were David Mil- lard, Oliver Barr, John Phillips, Josiah Knight, E. W. Devore, William Mills, D. F. Ladley, Christian Winebrenner, and Ebenezer Wheeler.
The articles of incorporation reaffirmed the original provisions as to the name, the scholarships, the rights under them, the pro- tection to the fund, and the denominationalism of the trustees and board of instruction.
That it "shall be under the management of a board of thirty- four (34) trustees, who shall be elected for the term of three years, and shall remain in office until their successors are chosen and qualified." That this board should be elected by the owners of scholarships, each scholarship entitling the holder to one vote. No one person, however, could cast more than ten votes.
That " the board of trustees shall appoint the president, profes- sors, teachers, and assistants, and all such officers and agents as the interests of the institution demands; and the faculty so appointed shall have authority to prescribe rules for the reception, discipline or expulsion of any pupil or pupils; to prescribe the course of studies to be pursued in the college or any department thereof; to prescribe books, charts, chemical, philosophical and other scientific appara- tus; and shall have authority to confer such honors and degrees, as are usually conferred by colleges."
By these articles the sub-committee became the legal trustees, and so remained until an election under the charter.
It will be seen that this charter contemplated no state or munici- pal control, or influence of any kind, and provided for no members, er-officio, not even the president of the college; that the board of trustees, two-thirds of whom were to be of the Christian denomin- ation, were elected by the scholarship holders, who thus constituted a joint stock company, with shares of one hundred dollars each ;
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that the trustees had the power of holding and controlling the property, managing the finances, and appointing the faculty and other officers, while the faculty had the sole control of the educa- tional work, including the conferring of degrees.
The first Board of Trustees .- Was elected at a meeting of scholar- ship holders, held in the college chapel, September 4, 1854.
The following persons were elected: Aaron IIarlan, Elias Smith, Horace Mann, Jacob F. Crist, Joseph E. Wilson, Charles Ridge- way, E. W. Devore, Nathan Ward, Jacob Reesor, David Cross, Joseph P. Cory, John Kershner, John Kneisley, A. S. Dean, Noah P. Sprague, James Maxwell, Samuel Stafford, John Phillips, Wil- liam II. Carey, Moses H. Grinnell, William Mills, Eli Fay, Amasa Stanton, Peter Cooper, A. M. Merrifield, D. P. Pike, Benjamin Cummings, Charles H. Olmstead, N. S. Morrison, George W. Web- ster, J. R. Freese, William R. King, and F. A. Palmer.
The board was organized by the choice of IIon. Aaron Harlan president ; Elias Smith, Esq., vice president; William R. King, sec- retary ; and IIon: William Mills, treasurer.
The second election took place June 27,.1857. This board con- tinued in office until the reorganization in 1859.
The First Faculty .- At the meeting of the sub-committee, in Enon, Ohio, January 21, 1852, a committee was appointed "to correspond with suitable persons to constitute the faculty of the college." Here, for the first time, the idea was seriously entertained of inviting Hon. Horace Mann to become its president. Correspondence was opened with him, and in June following it was announced that he would accept the position.
At a meeting in Yellow Springs, September 15, 1852, the con- mittee on a faculty made their report, and the election took place. Horace Mann was elected president, and C. S. Pennell and Miss R. M. Pennell of Massachusetts, Rev. Thomas Holmes of New Hamp- shire, Rev. W. II. Doherty and Ira W. Allen of New York, col- leagues on the faculty, and A. L. MeKinney of Indiana, principal of the preparatory department.
Horace Mann and his Colleagues .- On accepting the position, Mr. Mann devoted himself heart and soul to his work.
Professor and Miss Pennell were relatives of Mr. Mann, who had already become distinguished as teachers in high and normal schools in Massacliusetts. Mr. Mann had signified his wish, that if he should accept the presidency, they might be associated with him,
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in order that his colleagues might not all be strangers to him, and that he might have some who he knew would understand him, and his aims and methods, to assist him in inaugurating his work. Professor Doherty was a graduate of the Royal Belfast College, Ireland, a ripe scholar, especially in moral and metaphysical studies and belles lettres, and an eloquent preacher.
The other members appointed on the faculty belonged to the de- nomination which founded the school, and were persons of liberal education and experience as teachers. Professor Holmes was a graduate of Oberlin, Professor Allen of Hamilton, New York, and Professor Mckinney of Wabash College, Crawfordsville, Indiana.
The first faculty meeting was held at Mr. Mann's residence, in West Newton, Massachusetts, about the 1st of November, 1852, the members from the western states coming to Massachusetts for that purpose. Mr. Mann describes it as unexpectedly harmonious in views and opinions.
At this meeting a division of labor among the several members was agreed upon, and three additional professorships were pro- jected, for which there were no appointees.
Faculty .- The faculty and their professorships were arranged and published, as follows:
Hon. Horace Mann, LL. D., President, and Professor of Political Economy, Intellectual and Moral Philosophy, Constitutional Law, and Natural Theology.
Rev. W. H. Doherty, A. M., Professor of Rhetoric, Logic, and Belles-Lettres.
Ira W. Allen, A. M., Professor of Mathematics, Astronomy, and Civil Engineering.
Rev. Thomas Holmes, A. M., Professor of Greek Language and Literaturc.
C. S. Pennell, A. M., Professor of Latin Language and Literature.
Miss R. M. Pennell, Professor of Physical Geography, Drawing, Natural History, Civil History, and Didactics.
Professor of Chemistry, and Theory and Practice of Agriculture.
Professor of Mineralogy and Geology.
, Professor of Modern Languages.
Rev. A. L. McKinney, Principal of Preparatory School.
The dedication and inauguration took place October 5, 1853. An immense concourse assembled from all parts of the state, and
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many other states. The ceremonies consisted of the investiture of the president in his office, by the presentation of the charter and keys; in an address by Rev. I. N. Walter, and a response by Presi- dent Mann, and also the delivery by Mr. Mann of his dedicatory and inaugural address.
Opening of the School .- On the following day the school was opened by the examination of students. The grounds were un- cleaned and unfenced, and the building still unfinished, though all the rooms of Antioch hall and the north dormitory were ready for occupation.
A freshman class of six, four gentlemen and two ladies, was ad- mitted, and over two hundred entered the preparatory and English classes.
To this freshman class, one was added during the term, two at the beginning of the sophomore, eight at the beginning of the junior, and one at the beginning of the senior year. Three left during the course, leaving a class of fifteen, twelve gentlemen and three ladies, who graduated in the first class, June 27, 1857.
The cheap tuition effected by the scholarship system, and the general interest which had been awakened in the canvass for money, as well as the reputation of President Mann, brought in an influx of students, which continued until the abolishing of the scholar- ships, by the failure and assignment of 1859.
Horace Mann as President .- For the first years of the college, and until its embarrassments began seriously to manifest themselves, Mr. Mann kept himself aloof from its financial affairs, and devoted himself to overseeing and inspiring the educational work. Ile strove to make the acquaintance and gain the confidence of every student, and to impart his own inspiration to live for the highest ends. The health and morals of the students were his special care, and publicly and privately he labored to guard and promote them. The earnestness and power of his words, his pathos, wit, and occa- sional sarcasm, will never be forgotten by any who were his pupils. In discipline, his aim was to check the beginnings of disorder. He was firm and thorough, but ready to accept any hope of amend- ment.
In the relations of the two sexes, his aim was, by publie recep- tions and otherwise, to give frequent opportunities for social inter- course in the presence of teachers and friends, that it might be the easier to restrain any tendency to seek private interviews.
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Colored Students .- Early in the college history, some students from a colored family presented themselves, and were received. Great excitement was aroused at once, and the president of the trustees sent Mr. Mann a note, forbidding him to receive them. His answer was that he would never consent to be connected with an institution from which any person of requisite qualifications was excluded on grounds of color, sex, physical deformity, or anything for which such person was not morally responsible. In this he was sustained by his colleagues. This position Antioch has always maintained, though both before and during the war it was done at large sacrifice. While a few students left the school, and others stayed away on account of it, firmness rendered the internal com- motion superficial and temporary. Except Oberlin, Antioch was a pioneer in this principle, and its proximity to the border line of slavery made it cost the more to stand by it.
Financial History and Denominational Relations .- As has been stated, the original plan, incorporated into the first charter, provid- ed that two-thirds of the board of trustees, and a majority of the board of instruction, should at all times be members of the Chris- tian denomination. Its educational fund was raised by the sale of scholarships, the interest on which was to sustain the educational expenses of all departments of the institution. For building funds, the trustees looked to local and special contributions.
When the buildings were finished, these local and special con- tributions had all been exhausted; money had been borrowed in large amounts, on mortgages and otherwise; and a heavy indebt- edness on account, for labor and materials, stood against the college; how heavy, in the absence of any suitable books, it was impossible to tell. Considerable contributions were made within the denom- ination towards paying this debt; and agents were sent to New York and Boston, to solicit aid of Unitarians, as friends of liberal learning. Rev. Dr. Bellows, Hon. Moses H. Grinnell, and Peter Cooper, of New York, and Hon. Albert Fearing, of Boston, and many others, gave it generous aid. Still the debt remained, and statements concerning the financial status were discordant and con- fused. This bred distrust, and distrust checked donations.
The educational expenses were nearly $10,000 a year above the receipts from the scholarship interest.
At the end of the fourth academic year, June 27, 1857, about $40,000 of the principal of the scholarship notes had been paid in,
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and, notwithstanding the provisions of the charter for its security, it had been' "borrowed" by the trustees, and expended for inci- dental uses. They, doubtless, expected to be able to refund it out of moneys raised to pay off the debt; but as the funds for that purpose did not come in, they were unable to restore this. And still there were debts outstanding, as it proved, amounting to over $80,000.
In this state of affairs, the trustees resolved no longer to continue this regime, but to stop expenditures as a financial corporation, and to pay their debts, if possible. To continue longer would be to wrong the creditors of the corporation, as well as the stockholders (scholarship holders), who might, under the laws of Ohio, be liable for the debts of the corporation beyond the amount of their scholarships. Accordingly, an assignment of the property was made. F. A. Palmer, Esq., President of Broadway Bank, New York, who had been a liberal friend of the college, and was at that time its treasurer, was appointed assignec. Two years were de- voted to settlement and liquidation. During these two years, earnest efforts were made by the friends of the educational aims of the college, East and West, to raise money to purchase the property when sold.
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In the meantime, the educational work of the college was com- paratively undisturbed. At the time of the assignment the faculty was reorganized. President Mann was retained in his position, and four of his colleagues were reappointed: Professors Cary (successor to Professor Pennell), Warriner, and Holmes, and Mrs. Dean, formerly Miss Pennell. Rev. Austin Craig, D. D., was ap- pointed Professor of Rhetoric, Logic, etc .; Miss Lucretia Crocker, Professor of Mathematics; and J. B. Weston, who graduated at that commencement, Principal of the Preparatory Department. Professor Holmes was in Europe, where he had been spending two years. He did not accept the appointment, but re-entered the ministry. The year following, Dr. Craig was succeeded by H. C. Badgers, and Miss Crocker by F. W. Bardwell. The faculty, as thus constituted, with the usual corps of assistants in the Prepara- tory Department, carried on the educational work for two years, at their own risk, dividing the receipts, which amounted to about half their stipulated salaries.
In the spring of 1859, a suit for foreclosure was entered in the United States Court, in Cincinnati, by the Hartford Insurance
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Company, which held a first mortgage on the real estate, and granted. The property was appraised : the real estate at $60,000, and the personal property at $5,000. The sale was advertised to take place April 19, 1859.
On the day before, the friends of the college assembled at Yel- low Springs, effected an organization, and combined their funds, with the intent of purchasing the property, if they should not be outbidden at the sale. The sale was effected by John Kebler, Esq., Master Commissioner, and the property was bid off by F. A. Pal- mer, the assignee, at two-thirds the valuation, no bidder appearing against him. It was transferred by him, on the same terms, to five provisional trustees; and by them, April 22, 1859, to the trustees of the new corporation, known as "Antioch College, of Yellow Springs, Greene County, Ohio."
The men comprising this body and raising funds for it, resolved that none of the debts of the old corporation should remain unpaid. The scholarship fund, the paid-up stock of the old corporation, which had been expended, was not deemed a debt. Thus about eighty thousand dollars was really paid for property, though it was bid off at about half that sum. This money was raised in the Christian and Unitarian denominations; about equal proportions from each.
The new charter avowed the sympathy of the corporators "in the liberal and unsectarian spirit in which the college originated, and in the generous ideas which prevailed in its educational plans," and expressed their desire that the new organization should "per- petnate its general educational policy, and be managed and con- ducted upon its liberal principles." The rights and powers were " vested in a board of trustees, composed of twenty persons, twelve of whom shall always be members of the religious denomination of 'Christians,' as that denomination is hereinbefore described, and eight of whom shall always be members of the Unitarian denomi- nation of Christians." The trustees, as named in the charter, were: "Horace Mann, Eli Fay, J. B. Weston, E. M. Birch, and T. M. McWhinney, of Yellow Springs, Ohio; John Phillips, E. W. Devore, and John Kebler, of Ohio; Thomas Harless and Artemus Carter, of Chicago; George Partridge, of St. Louis; Albert Fear- ing and Edward Edmunds, of Boston; Moses Cummings, of New Jersey ; Henderson Gaylord and E. W. Clarke, of Pennsylvania ; Henry W. Bellows, Charles Butler, G. W. Hosmer, and Amasa Stanton, of New York.
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The board was made a close organization, with power to fill its own vacancies perpetually. The president of the board was also president of the college, and chairman ex-officio of the executive committee. It was provided that " no debt shall ever be contracted by the corporation, nor shall it have power to mortgage or pledge any portion of its real or personal property ; * * and no portion of the expenses of any one year shall be carried over to the suc- ceeding year." The power of conferring degrees under this char- ter was vested in the trustees. Horace Mann was appointed president of the new corporation, Artemus Carter, secretary and treasurer, and Horace Mann, ex-officio; Eli Fay, John Kebler, E. M. Birch, and J. B. Weston, executive committee.
The faculty and the educational policy were continued without change. The financial revolution which was going on without scarcely affected the work within; though every pupil was alive with anxious hope and fear at the prospect, and finally with exul- tation at the successful issue.
The new corporation was thus launched free from debt, a condi- tion it has ever since strictly preserved.
Free from Debt, but without Emlowment-Its friends had been so heavily taxed to purchase the property, that it was deemed impo- litic to try at that time to raise an endowment. In lieu of this, notes were given by friends, for various sums, payable in annual installments for three years-enough to secure an income of five thousand dollars annually outside of receipts for tuition. To these notes President Mann and most of the faculty made liberal con- tributions. Thus the annual expenses for three years were pro- vided for.
Death of President Mann .- The labors of Mr. Mann during these two years, especially towards the close, had been incessant and severe, and his anxiety intense. The successful termination was the un- loading of a heavy burden, and the relaxing of nervous tension. Under the reaction he was taken by an acute disease, and died a triumphant death at Yellow Springs, August 19, 1859. He was buried in the college grounds, and the next year his remains were taken to Providence, Rhode Island, and re-interred by the side of his first wife.
The blow to the college and its friends was a severe one. The hopes of all had been centered in him, as the master spirit of the great work-but now he was suddenly called to leave it. He had
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lived long enough, however, to project much of his spirit into the organic life of the institution. The faculty and students all felt themselves bound to it by a hallowed tie. The spirit of its incep- tion it has been the aim ever to preserve.
Rer. Thomas Hill, D. D., President .- In September, 1859, Dr. Hill was appointed as Mr. Mann's successor, and entered upon his duties January, 1860. He stipulated, as a condition of acceptance, that two thousand dollars a year for three years should be provided for, to meet contingent expenses, in addition to the five thousand pre- viously pledged. This was done. This provision would terminate June, 1862.
President Hill gave his energy and learning to the interest of the college in all departments. The old life of the school continued, but with a gradual abatement of numbers. In 1860 a class of twenty-eight was graduated, (the largest ever graduated in one year,) in 1861 a class of seven, in 1862 of eighteen.
In the spring of 1861, Dr. Hill went to New England to com- mence the work of raising an endowment, to be ready to meet the expiration of the temporary provisions. While there (April, 1861), news came of the bombardment and evacuation of Fort Sumpter. The war broke out and absorbed all thought and interest. Noth- ing could be done for Antioch.
Dr. Hill remained in office until June, 1862. No provisions re- mained to meet the expenses of the college, and the faculty resigned.
During the war, at the request of the trustees, Prof. J. B. Wes- ton assumed the control of the school, and, associating a corps of teachers with himself, continued it on a self-supporting basis. For two years, to June, 1864, some of the college classes were kept up, and provisions made for examinations in others, and one student was graduated each year. The next year the preparatory and Eng- lish classes were continued by Prof. Lewis Prugh and Mrs. A. E. Weston. During these three years, Rev. Austin Craig, D. D., was president of the trustees, with leave of absence; Prof. Weston act- ing president.
Difficulties .- Difficulties breed dissensions; and none are more fruitful than the financial difficulties of associated bodies. Of this Antioch has had abundant experience. The brilliant pictures of the prospective Antioch were so highly drawn that realization was impossible, and disappointment was a foregone fact. Money was called for of scholarships, and to pay accumulated debts. This was
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contrary to the expectations which had been excited. Many in- vested money in town lots, expecting a great city to arise around the college, and a chance to make fortunes by the rise of property. This they failed to realize. Money was solicited and paid on the assurance that the debts would be liquidated; but still they were set at figures higher and higher. Finally, the bubble of scholar- ships burst. It was the wreck of many a bright promise. Amid so many difficulties misunderstandings were inevitable, and some- body must be the victim of curses.
The increasing contributions of the Unitarian friends of the college, of necessity, led to an increase of their influence. It was natural that the disappointed parties should cast the blame on them. Many non-sectarians are sectarian in their non-sectarianism. It was so among the patrons of Antioch. While with those of both denominations who were willing to work for an institution of high rank, standing on simply a Christian basis, there always existed the best of harmony and co-operation, there were others, especially of the Christians, who wished it more "strictly denominational." This spirit was fanned by some disappointed aspirants, until in the Christian denomination there was a wide-spread dissatisfaction. Many promised liberal contributions to restore the college exclus- ively to its original hands, and many others had confidence of success if this could be effected.
Accordingly, at the meeting of the trustees in June, 1862, pro- positions of compromise were made and accepted. According to these propositions, the trustees representing the Christian denom- ination were to make an effort to raise an endowment of fifty thou- sand dollars in one year. The time was afterwards extended to two years. If they succeeded in this, the Unitarian members were to consent to a change in the provisions of the charter, fixing the de- nominational relations of the trustees, and to resign, leaving the entire ownership and control of the college in the hands of the re- maining members. If the Christians failed in this, they were to allow a like privilege to the Unitarian members.
The two years passed, Prof. Weston, in the meantime, carrying on the school on his own risk and responsibility. The most earnest efforts and appeals were made, and the most favorable terms offered for the payment of the sums that might be pledged; but the funds did not appear. Scarcely one-tenth of the requisite amount was pledged.
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In June, 1864, the hope of raising an endowment from this source was abandoned, and the work turned over to the Unitarian mem- bers. They stipulated that the provision making any denomina- tional relations, a condition of eligibility to the board of trustees should be entirely removed. This was provisionally agreed to.
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