Monticello College - Echo Yearbook (Godfrey, IL)

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CAPTAIN GODFREY Horn: Chatham, Mass., May 20, 1794 Died: Godfrey, Illinois, August 13, 1862 Before settling in the West, Captain Benjamin Godfrey spent twenty vears u| on the sea. He traveled to all parts of the world, many of his voyages being very dangerous. Finally, he was ship-wrecked in the Gulf of Mexico and his entire fortune was lost. After this disaster he lived for seven years in Mexico and then returned to the United States. In 1832 he became a partner in the firm of Godfrey Gilman in Alton, Illinois, and in 1834 he established his home in the village of Monticello. Since there is another Monti cello in Illinois, the name of the town was changed to Godfrey. Here at Godfrey, Illinois, he accomplished the great work of his career—a work such as few men in his sphere of life, and of his unpretending humility have been permitted to accomplish—the founding of an institution for the higher education of women, and the placing of this institution in the hands of a Board of Trustees. Captain Godfrey was an eminently thoughtful man, with a broad and just point of view. He was a notable man, enterprising and benevolent, with an unaffected modesty which caused him carefully to shun notoriety. He had very little formal education himself, but he realized its importance and had a clear conception of its aim. In the original deed of trust which Captain Godfrey wrote, he said: The end of all true education should be to develop the powers of man, both physically and mentally, and to lit him for enjoyment, and for the discharge of his duty in all stages of his existence. Captain Godfrey BEGINNINGS OK MONTICELLO Scattered over the West were many families who were anxiously looking for good schools where their daughters could be boarded as well as taught. Many young women in different parts of the country were full of aspirations and enthusiasm for knowledge, and were awaiting the opportunity to obtain an education. Reflection upon the influence of the mother upon her child, and the influence of women in the home and in general society led Captain Godfrey to undertake the founding of Monticello Female Seminary. The spot chosen for the site was the edge of an open forest of majestic trees which growing apart gave a grove-like appearance. The building, begun in 1836 and completed in 1838, was made of stone with three stories above the basement. It was expected that the work of instruction would begin in the autumn of 1837, at the same time that Mary Lyon opened the doors of Mount Holyoke, but in consequence of the unfinished state of the building, the opening was delayed until the following spring. Monticello Seminary opened April II, 1838, with sixteen pupils. Earlv life at the Seminary was interesting from the novelty of its circumstances and the freshness and beauty of the surroundings. Monticello was in more than one sense a bright spot in the wilderness. ’I he lawn, which sloped from the building to the gateway contrasted in its more cultivated aspect with the woods and o| en prairie stretching away to the horizon. In those days traveling was very difficult and Captain Godfrey, always alive to the interests of the school, decided to build a railway between Alton and Springfield over which the majority of the pupils would pass. He wished it clearly understood that this consideration more than any other influenced him to risk his fortune in the enterprise. In 1841 the railroad was begun and finally after years filled with many difficulties it was finished. In 1853 the citizens of Alton presented to Captain Godfrey a handsome silver pitcher as a token of their appreciation for the two great undertakings of his life—the construction of the Alton II Springfield Railroad and the founding of Monticello Female Seminary.