Wilmington College - Wilmingtonian Yearbook (Wilmington, OH)

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employed a matron to manage it on the club plan for the benefit of col: lege students. Boys who roomed elsewhere were permitted to board at the Twin Ash dining hall at club rates. Benjamin Trueblood Second President, 1874-1879 In 1874, Benjamin Trueblood, a graduate of Earlham College and professor of Latin and Greek at Penn College (1872-74), was chosen to succeed Lewis Estes. He was a very young man, being only twenty-seven years of age, probably the college’s youngest president. While at Earlham, he had met Sarah Terrell, a Clinton County girl, whom he later married and brought as a bride to Wilmington College, where she served both as teacher and matron. To meet the living needs for the young men of the college, South Hall dormitory was erected in 1875-76 for the sum of $5000. Both boarding halls ran on the club plan with a matron in charge. Meals were served for five to eight cents per meal in those days eo rooms cost only one dollar per week or ess. Wilmington College was incorporated in 1875 under the laws of Ohio to operate under a joint board of managers and trustees ap- pointed by the Center, Miami, and Fairfield Quarterly meetings, mem- bers of the Indiana Yearly Meeting. The course of study in President Trueblood’s administration was pat- terned strictly according to the classical ideas of that day. Extensive offerings of foreign language predominated the curriculum. So that the student of this day may know the nature of education which was given in that day, quotations will be made from the 1877-78 catalog: “In the selection and arrangement of the studies of the different courses, no undue preponderance has been given to any department. In the classical course, while those studies are retained which, by the test of time, have proved so productive of mental discipline, the practical studies, which the needs of modern times demand, receive a fair share of attention. The scientific course is designed to meet the wants of those who do not desire to devote their time to the ancient classics, but yet wish to enjoy the advantages of a liberal educa- tion. “Believing that the study of the Greek and Latin languages, as a vehicle of literature, manners and customs of the cultivated nations of the ancient world, is an essential part of a liberal education, we have taken care to select those works which experience has proved most fruitful in securing good mental discipline and which makes the student acquainted with the best expressions of Grecian and Roman eloquence, philosophy and poetry. It is believed that in this way only is the student enabled to proceed to the study of the laws which govern the development of human thought as evinced in language, and to the wonderful results of modern philosophy. Special time is devoted in the last year of the course to the study of language as a science and to the careful application of its analogies and deduction to the English tongue. The student is thus led to an intelligent appreciation of his own language, attainable, we believe, in no other way.”

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Wilmington College The Society of Friends is noted for its emphasis on education, as no religious group has more colleges in proportion to the size of its member- ship. A group of far-sighted Friends under the leadership of John Doug-. las and Jonathan Bailey started a movement to raise the necessary funds for the purchase of the Franklin College building and grounds. Jonathan Bailey, grandfather of Laurenna Farbuhar, drove his white horse hitched to a phaeton over Miami, Center, and Fairfield Quarterly meetings to collect money for the purchase. The Board of Directors, with John Henry Douglas as president, appointed a committee consisting of R. E. Doan and Jesse Starbuck to look after immediate repairs. They furnished the building with two hundred and twenty seats, forty settees, four stoves and a college bell at a cost of $260. They had the building ready for the formal dedication on April 11, 1871. This was a great day for the newly organized Wilmington College. Lewis Estes First President, 1871-1874 The first president of Wilmington College was Lewis Estes, graduate of Bowdoin College and a member of the Earlham College faculty. He was a very scholarly man and laid a solid foundation upon which to build for the fu- ture. He had two sons, Ludovic and Row- land, who taught with him in the college. The first street east of the campus is named in honor of his elder son. Two nieces of Mrs. Estes, Emma Clark and Anna Hoag, the former a teacher, were with the Estes most of their time in Wilmington. President Estes and his family lived on an upper floor of the college building until they moved to the newly erected Twin Ash Hall in 1873. The college was heated with stoves in those days. Ellen Wright, a student of this period, told of liv- ing on an upper floor and of carrying coal and water to her room. President Estes was employed for a term of five years to run the school, largely as a private enterprise. He was given the use of College Hall for dwelling and class room purposes. He was permitted to collect the tuitions from students and in turn was held responsible for all expenses of teaching and maintenance. He was an elderly man and found the strain of run- ning a college too great for his strength, so after three years of service he resigned. There was a period of five months at the close of President Estes’ term in which no school was held. There are no catalogs on file in the college offices that tell of the course of study during the first administration, but, from the training Ellen Wright received then as a student, the courses must have been much the same as those in President Trueblood’s administration which followed, such as we find recorded in 1874-75. Twin Ash Hall was built during this period, 1872-73, and was run privately by individuals who Bs | es

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This quotation was probably written by Benjamin Trueblood and gives the theory of education or that day which emphasizes the value of mental discipline and that one learns to understand and speak his mother tongue best by studying the Greek and Latin languages. The college year was first divided into three terms of twelve weeks each; later fiiteen weeks was given to the tall term to make it extend up to the Christmas holidays. his plan was tollowed until 1914, when the semester plan was adopted. Much can be said in favor of this plan, as it divided the year better than either the modern quarter or semester plans. The great disadvantage was in evaluating the work in units when terms were of different periods of time. Students in that day were not so “credit-hour” conscious as they are today, as the diploma was their goal and served in place of transcripts when transferring or securing a job. The tuition for the courses was one dollar per week, $15 for the fall term and $12 for each of the other two terms. ‘l'his cost of education was held to strictly and maintained almost as a tradition until 1903 when it was raised to $1.25 per week. Wilmington College has always been an opportunity school seeking to give educational training to all. Two bachelor degrees, the A. B. and B. S., were given from the be- ginning of the college. A third degree, the Master’s degree, was also given. A student after three years of successful service, particularly in the teaching field, could apply for an examination, and upon the presen- tation of a suitable thesis and the successful passing of the examination be granted the Master’s degree, which was regarded as a teacher’s de- gree. Ellen Wright was a member of the first graduating class of 1875, and at a later date was granted a Master’s degree from Wilmington Col- lege. The period served by President Trueblood was perhaps the most strenuous one in the history of the college. During his administration in 1878-79, because of lack of funds, there was a feeling that Friends should give up the management of the college. To meet this situation, a group - of 104 faithful Friends, of which Jesse Starbuck of Dover was president and Richard Greene was secretary, guaranteed necessary support to the college for a period of five years. In 1879, after five years of splendid service, President Trueblood resigned to accept the presidency of Penn College, Oskaloosa, Iowa. He attained fame in life through his efforts in promoting world peace. He served twenty-five years as president of the American Peace Society and was one of the founders of the Perma- nent Court of Arbitration at the Hague. : The Trueblood family resided in Twin Ash Hall. The late Eva Ross, . as a student in College, cared for the young children of the Trueblood fam-— ily. They gave to the College a youthful spirit of self-sacrifice that was so badly needed at that time. This same spirit of sacrifice spread to all : the friends of the College, giving an increased impetus to their efforts to carry on under strenuous difficulties. The Truebloods set a standard of excellence that has prevailed throughout the years. A great sorrow came to the family in the loss of their first-born and only son, Irvin, who now lies buried in Sugar Grove Cemetery, Wilming- ton, with his parents. oy | ae