Washington College - Pegasus Yearbook (Chestertown, MD)

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1931 PEGASUS History of Washington College William Smith First President 1782-1789 l j ||N 1723 there was established in Chestertown an in- T-l. stitution known as the Kent County Free School. h This became the principal seat of learning on the ' — Eastern Shore, and in 1782 the Board of Visitors, anticipating an attendance of two hundred students and feeling that many of these desired to enter upon a course of philosophy and must repair to some other state at a very grievous and inconvenient expense to secure their edu- cation, decided to enlarge their plans and add courses in the arts and sciences of a higher nature. A petition was sent to the Legislature of Maryland and permission was granted to change the school into a college. Reverend Dr. William Smith, who had come to Chestertown in 1780 as rector of the Chester Parish Church, was principal of the Kent County School at this time, and was responsible for raising the sum of ten thousand pounds which the state demanded should be raised for the support of the institution. Among the contributors was George Washington, who gave the college fifty guineas, and, while at camp at Newburgh, gave permission that the new institution should be named in his honor, Washington College. He wrote that he was pleased that this honor should be conferred upon him. The first commencement was held May 14, 1783, with impressive cere- monies and orations given in French and Latin. The next year Washington, who had been made a member of the Board of Visitors and Governors, made a visit to the College, where he was regally entertained. In 1789 he was given the degree of Doctor of Laws by this institution. In 1784, St. John ' s College was established at Annapolis, and for several years this College was united with Washington College as the University of Maryland. These two institutions were supported partly by state aid for nearly twenty years. An allowance was annually received and an able faculty provided for Washington College. Many of the most distinguished men of the state and of nearby states attended Washington College. V A.SiIl.N-f i ' 0 - COM.KOK.-. - i ,,-, ' . V. ! ' :■ ,. I. V . ' i- - i ■ ■ ■ ■ a a ■ I ■ a ■ ■ B a K 1 1 1 1 1 ■ ill f 1 1 I 1 Igl 1 1 1 1 1 1 L. ■ . . f ■. ■ ■ H.i.l ■ ■..in .1. JL , built in 17 S3, . the original home of wasfiin nd completely destroyed bij fire of Washington College, iras ,. h.. fl.. ;« January, 1S2?

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1931 PEGASUS CoijN Ferguson Second President 1789-1804 At the end of the century the Legislature deprived the College of funds. As a result there was a rapid and hopeless decline. This was increased by the fire of 1827, which reduced to ashes the one building in which the Col- lege was housed. Although the Visitors and Governors were discouraged, they did not entirely despair, but rented a privat-e house in town and continued the existence of the College. A very small grant from the Legislature was secured, and by careful economy and the employment of only one professor a fund was accumulated which was large enough by 1845 to erect a new building on the Hill. The president at the time was Richard W. Rin- gold. He is responsible for the rebuilding of the College. That he succeeded is shown by a statement in The Kent News of August 22, 1846. We read, The recent exam- ination of the students of Washington College resulted most creditably to the pupils and professors. The scholars talk Latin like a book — they have Horace at their tongues ' end and read the most difficult orations in Greek as if they were in the vernacular. They understand, too, the philosophy of the languages, and are ready in a moment to give a reason for the faith that is in them. The algebraical solutions, the more complicated questions of arithmetic, and the demonstrations of the most abstruse problems of Euclid seem almost as familiar to them as household words. In 1847 the Mount Vernon Literary Society was organized. This is the oldest literary society in Maryland. Annual banquets were held by this society in honor of George Washington, and every year, on the evening before Commencement, an honorary address was given under its auspices. In 1849 Commencement exercises were resumed, no diplomas having been granted since 1827. The col- lege continued to prosper, and by 1854 two additional buildings were erected, one on either side of the main building. These were known then, as well as now, as East and West Hall. The era of reconstruction after the Civil War was one of poverty and depression for the South and for Wash- ington College. At one time the undergraduate registra- tion totalled only thirty-five, while but two professors were required. Through- out the two decades following the Civil War, the little college struggled to regain the prestige and support it had lost. The administration, 1873-1887, of William J. Rivers, A. M., was notable for reestablishing the scholarly repu- tation of the College. The gifts of President Rivers, how- ever, were for instruction, not for organization or adver- tising. Graduates were cultured, but they were few. State support and the leadership of Dr. Charles W. Reid, who assumed the reins in 1889, were together re- sponsible for enlarging and modernizing the plant and multiplying the enrollment. In 1892 nearly 120 students matriculated at the College. In the summer of that year the community built a gymnasium, which was equipped Charles w Reid generosity of the Board. The munificence of the Fo tZth Prescient State, atoning for the neglect of former years, financed the 1889-1903 erection of the three most pretentious and essential build- 1817-1823 ; 1854-1860