Duke University - Chanticleer Yearbook (Durham, NC)

Page 22 text:

JOHN CARLISLE KILGO ABOLISHES INTER-COLLEGIATE FOOTBALL AT TRINITY But it was John Carlisle Kilgo, then serving as financial agent for Wofford College in South Caro- lina, who was selected. Upon his arrival in Durham, Kilgo immediately impressed the college community with his ability as a preacher and an educational leader. Faculty members, Trustees, and students were greatly pleased with the new President, and indeed, so was all North Carolina Methodism. No one doubted that he meant business when he abolished inter-collegiate football in 1895 because the game has grown to be such an evil that the best tastes of the public have rebelled against it. He knew that this move would be reflected in the size of the student body, but he felt that the fortunes of the College are the fortunes of faith in Christ and the right, rather than in its football record. This incident is significant because of the other changes and improve- ments which were brought about during his administration. For one thing, he was instrumental in establishing the Law School. And, always interested in maintaining high standards, he established Trinity Park School for the express purpose of training students for admission to Trinity College. He was, indeed, so successful in raising the educational standards of the College, that in 1895, when the Southern Association of Secondary Schools and Col- leges was formed, Trinity entered as the only member of college rank. The waning interest of the Duke family in the fortunes of the College was justly revived by the intense and successful industry of President Kilgo. In 1897, Washington Duke contributed one hundred thousand dollars to a permanent endowment conditioned on the admission of women. And then in 1899, and again in 1900, he supplemented his first gift with like amounts. UNPAID PROFESSORS TENDER THEIR RESIGNATIONS

Page 21 text:

JULIAN S. CARR DONATES black- well ' s PARK, A FORMER RACE TRACK AS THE COLLEGE SITE buildings and for endowment, the Board of Trustees in 1891 decided upon the removal of the College to Durham instead of to Raleigh. Incidentally, the same charter which was issued by the Legislature in 1891 to authorize this removal, granted alumni the right of representation on the Board of Trustees for the first time. The financial depression of 1891 caught the college, newly-opened in Durham in the fall of 1892, with an overloaded faculty and an operating burden beyond its capacity to carry. The Faculty began to oppose Pres- ident Crowell partly on account of the inability of the College to make regular salary payments and partly because it considered many of his ad- ministrative policies to be autocratic. When in 1893 several members of the faculty tendered their resignations, Crowell decided that his usefulness as President of Trinity College was ended. However, the Trustees urged Crowell to remain as President. This he did, but within the next year he was convinced that his work at Trinity was finished because of the lack of support from the constituency of the institution. He resigned again in 1894, and although the Board of Trustees re- fused his resignation and reelected him by an unanimous vote, he de- clined to continue as president. Immediate steps were taken to secure a new leader. Editorials in newspapers of the state suggested a North Carolina man be chosen. m. i AN IRATE FACULTY PROTESTS THE RE- MOVAL OF TRINITY COLLEGE FROM RANDOLPH COUNTY THE FINANCIAL PANIC OF 1891

Page 23 text:

THE LAW SCHOOL ESTABLISHED . . . After his death, his two sons, Benjamin N. and James B. Duke, made frequent donations for the betterment of the school. The Duke family had again taken a personal interest in the school. That even as late as 1903 a professor could be publicly threatened for speaking his mind was proved by the famous Bassett affair. Professor John Spencer Bassctt, in an article published in the South Atlantic Quarterly, presented a scholarly discussion of the Negro problem in the South. Some of his views were con- trary to public opinion in North Carolina, and one of his statements, taken from the middle of a qualifying paragraph, was to the effect that Booker T. Washington was the second greatest man born in the South during the preceding century. Intense excitement was created by the article and vigorous denounce- ments were expressed through the editorial columns of the Raleigh News and Observer. The episode was a long drawn out affair, and many people were embittered by the controversy. Many thought that Professor Bas- sett should be asked to resign. Throughout the affair. Dr. Kilgo strongly defended Bassett ' s right to speak his mind, although his own position as President of the College was threatened. Fortunately, the outcome resulted in a declaration for academic freedom by the Trustees, and their decision did much toward securing further national recognition for Trinity College. William Preston Few, who for eight years had been Dean of the College, succeeded to the presidency in 1910 when Dr. Kilgo was made a Bishop of ADMISSION OF WOMEN STUDENTS AT TRINITY, 1897