University of Maryland College Park - Terrapin / Reveille Yearbook (College Park, MD)

Page 15 text:

He is a member of The Society of Chemical Industries of London and of the Maryland State Board of Agriculture. In December, 1913, he assumed his duties as President of the Maryland Agricultural College, which position he now holds. To his success a beautiful home life added most materially. In 1895 he married Elizabeth Hayward Hutchinson, an intellectual and vigorous woman, who has proven an excellent home builder and help-mate. They have one son and one daughter. Dr. and Mrs. Patterson take an unusually direct interest in the student life, entertaining often, and making their home a center of whole-souled merry- making. That some might not at first think it, because of his quiet manner. Dr. Patterson enjoys society hugely. But we are allowing our pen to tell of things which should be left to the character sketch below. The biography of a man should be chronicled in a dispassionate maniier. An appreciation should, however, express the prevailing o]Mnion sincerely and fully, without fear of being branded as an exaggeration. The above statement is made because the life of Dr. Harry J. Patterson is so full of personal and character element that it overshadows the mere recital of the events with which the usual short biography is concerned. Dr. Patterson is a man of broad synijiathies. He feels no class distinctions and is ambitious for the betterment of all, frowning upon everything that would tend to exploit one group for the benefit of any other. From the most noted man he meets, down to the humblest workman, he is recognized as a fellow spirit. If any barrier toward freedom of intercourse exists in the imagination of the stranger, it disappears at once under the influence of his gracious smile and simple, hearty greeting, with the result that the stranger is put at his ease and the way paved for a pleasant meeting. And whatever may be the quest of the visitor he is sure of a fair hearing. Though a man of strong convictions, Dr. Patterson is always willing to set aside his preconceived opinions and to give full consideration to the contentions of others. Narrowness and prejudice seem for- eign to him. He reserves judgment until the evidence is all in, and judges no one harshly from partial or biased report. But do not understand by this that he hesitates to take a definite stand. He is an opponent feared by those who have crossed him, for they have found behind his gracious and kindly manner, a man of determination who is willing to fight for his convictions. And absolute honesty and integrit)- are cardinal principles whose weight and worth are always on his side. But many men who are cosmopolitan in their sympathies, companionable with all whom they meet, firm in their convictions and honest in their dealings, yet lack a trait which makes our President rather an exception among ambitious men. Though full of dreams and plans, they are all for others. Unselfishness 9

Page 14 text:

Dt. Ssttj J. Pii aTSDin R. HARRY J. PATTERSON was born at Yellow Springs, Penn- sylvania, December 17, 1867. His father, William Calvm Patterson, and his mother, Adaline (Mattern) Patterson, lived on their farm for three years after Harry ' s birth, at which time the father was called to the State College of Pennsylvania, and at once took up his abode there. For years he was Superintendent of Buildings and Construction, and left there a heritage of good will and devotion to duty that makes the name Patterson a favored one at that institution. The son attended the common schools of the town until, as a boy of sixteen, he entered the college. The State College Annual, La Vie, of 1906, in a section devoted to noted alumni, says of him : ' ' Among the earlier Alumni in what we call the more modern period of the institution, Harry J. Patterson, of the Class of 1886, is a typical representative. Of Pennsylvania birth and ancestry, he was the sort of voung man for which the college was established. He was but a boy when he came into this neighbor- hood to live, hence he entered college quite young, took the full agricultural course, and graduated before he was twenty years old. Chemistry, in its relations to agriculture appealed to him more strongly than any other line of work. In this he served his apprenticeship here ; then removed to the Maryland Experiment Station, whose chemist he was for ten years. Since that time he has been director of the Experiment Station, and has been actively interested in the development of Maryland agriculture. The situation and varied interests of this State have made the position an important and exacting one. How ably it has been filled is well shown by the length of his occupancy and high commendation he has received from many quarters. He has taken an active interest in the farming and gardening opera- tions throughout the State, frequently apj ears at Farmers Institutes and other gatherings and is now Master of the State Grange. He is a member of all the leading Chemical Societies, of the Society for the Promotion of Agricultural, and Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, liesides all this he finds time to pay some attention to outside business and is a director of The First National Piank of Hyattsville, Maryland. Dr. Patterson is a frequent visitor at his Alma Mater, where his parents still reside, his father being our well-known and esteemed Superin- tendent of Grounds and Buildings. Since 1906 his notoriety has increased and he is now a member of all lead- ing societies of the State and of some of the national and international as well. 8

Page 16 text:

KMIP Kii 3 and utter lack of egotism make him far more inclined to sacrific his personal advancement than are the common run of men. He is of the patient type who believes that merit will. be eventually recognized and who accordingly devote their time to increasing their worth allowing advancement to come of its own sweet will. Thus when called to the Presidency of the College he accepted only after being repeatedly urged to do so. His hesitancy was due to the feeling that he was not well qualified for the task. In this day and age it is a wonderful privilege to acccuse a man of undue modesty and under-appreciation of himself, yet we now have that pleasure. His constructive work already done, and still more, the steps taken toward the future development of the College, prove that he has the execu- tive ability and the vision which are needed to bring the College to the people and the people to the College. Dr. Patterson shows his religion in his daily life by following the teaching of Him in whom he declares his faith. As in other things he shows no prejudice or narrowness as concerns denominations and creeds. Reared a Methodist he really throws his influence to St. Andrew ' s Episcopal Church in College Park, and with his family, may be seen regularly at its services. He conceived and brought to fruition the first Inter-denominational Conference of Ministers ever held in Maryland and has given an impetus to everything that makes for co-operation and for the strengthening of church life. Today he stands, a man with vision, looking at the agricultural iwssibilities of the State, its undeveloped resources in soil and climate and, still more, its boys and girls who hold the future of the State in their grasp; and, further, he sees coming from every comiv unity young men and young women bent upon know- ing more about scientific agriculture and domestic science. He sees them troop- ing in a thousand strong, enthusiastic and full of hope that somewhere in the broad acres of the campus, in the new and up-to-date buildings, now growing yearly in number, in the laboratories, the library, the college activities and by the student lamp, they will learn the secrets of nature and the friendship of the fairies of the soil that will enable them not only to make two blades of grass grow where one grew before, but to make two peals of laughter ring out where one could scarce sound out before. He sees this and calls upon the State to catch the vision. He sees the College as an instrument of the State in advancing the material welfare of all by turning out graduates with imagination fired by practical ideas for betterment, men and women prepared for leadership and im- bued with the idea that The pleasures of life come from work well done. To this man of dreams, with his quiet cordiality, unassuming manner and whole- soled optimism, we dedicate the RkvKilli-: of 1915. May his worth be increasingly appreciated. May every Marylander feel the urge of his ideal and hel]) him con- vert his air castles into, a Gymnasium, Chemistry, Agricultural, and Dormitory Buildings, dotting our campus with hum|)s of leaven that shall work mightily for Maryland. 10