Theodore Dwight Woolsey (31 October 1801 – 1 July 1889) was an American academic, author and

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Yale College Yale College is the undergraduate college of Yale University. Founded in 1701, it is the original school of the university. Although other Yale schools were founded as early as 1810, all of Yale was officially known as Yale College until 1887, ...

from 1846 through 1871.

Biography

Theodore Dwight Woolsey was born 31 October 1801 in New York City. His mother was Elizabeth Dwight (1772–1813) and father was William Walton Woolsey (1766–1839). At Yale, he served as President of the secret society,

Brothers in Unity Brothers in Unity (formally, the Society of Brothers in Unity) is an undergraduate society at Yale University. Founded in 1768 as a literary and debating society that encompassed nearly half the student body at its 19th-century peak, the group di ...

, and then graduated as valedictorian of his class from

in 1820. He consequently spent a year in legal study in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...

, and two years of the study of

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing th ...

Princeton Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the nin ...

. For some time, Woolsey was a tutor at Yale, then went abroad to study Greek in

Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as ...

Bonn The federal city of Bonn ( lat, Bonna) is a city on the banks of the Rhine in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, with a population of over 300,000. About south-southeast of Cologne, Bonn is in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ru ...

, and Berlin. From 1831 to 1846, he was professor of Greek at Yale. Woolsey's mother's brother Timothy Dwight (1752–1817) had been president of Yale 1795–1817. Jeremiah Day was the only president Yale had in between the family members. Woolsey was elected an Associate Fellow of the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, a ...

in 1845. After being chosen as president of Yale, he instructed students of history,

political economy Political economy is the study of how economic systems (e.g. markets and national economies) and political systems (e.g. law, institutions, government) are linked. Widely studied phenomena within the discipline are systems such as labour ...

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and ...

, and especially international law. He resigned as president of Yale in 1871. After

Noah Porter Noah Thomas Porter III (December 14, 1811 – March 4, 1892)''Obituary Record of Graduates of Yale University'', Yale University, 1891-2, New Haven, pp. 82-83. was an American Congregational minister, academic, philosopher, author, lexicographer ...

served as president, the office was back in the family as his cousin once removed Timothy Dwight V (1828–1916), was selected in 1886. In 1871, he was elected as a member to the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...

. During his 25 years as president, Yale advanced in wealth and influence and two new departments, the Scientific School and the

School of Fine Arts The School of Fine Arts or College of Fine Arts is the official name or part of the name of several schools of fine arts, often as an academic part of a larger university. These include: The Americas North America *Alabama School of Fine ...

, were begun. Woolsey was one of the founders of the ''New Englander'', chairman of the American commission for the revision of the Authorized Version of the Bible, president of the World's Evangelical Alliance at its international meeting in New York, a lifelong member and at one time president of the

American Oriental Society The American Oriental Society was chartered under the laws of Massachusetts on September 7, 1842. It is one of the oldest learned societies in America, and is the oldest devoted to a particular field of scholarship. The Society encourages basi ...

, and a regent of the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Found ...

. Among Woolsey's writings and publications are these: Editions of the ''Alcestis'' of

Euripides Euripides (; grc, Εὐριπίδης, Eurīpídēs, ; ) was a tragedian of classical Athens. Along with Aeschylus and Sophocles, he is one of the three ancient Greek tragedians for whom any plays have survived in full. Some ancient scholars ...

(1834), of the ''Antigone'' of

Sophocles Sophocles (; grc, Σοφοκλῆς, , Sophoklễs; 497/6 – winter 406/5 BC)Sommerstein (2002), p. 41. is one of three ancient Greek tragedians, at least one of whose plays has survived in full. His first plays were written later than, or c ...

(1835), of the ''Prometheus'' of Æschylus (1837), of the ''Electra'' of Sophocles (1837), and of the ''Gorgias'' of

Plato Plato ( ; grc-gre, Πλάτων ; 428/427 or 424/423 – 348/347 BC) was a Greek philosopher born in Athens during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. He founded the Platonist school of thought and the Academy, the first institution ...

(1843); an edition of

Lieber Lieber is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Clara Lieber (1902–1982), an American chemist * Charles M. Lieber (born 1959), professor of chemistry at Harvard University * Ernst Maria Lieber (1838–1902), German politician * F ...

's ''Civil liberty and Self Government'', and: * ''Introduction to the study of International Law'' (1860, many times republished) * ''Essays on Divorce and Divorce Legislation'' (1869) * ''Religion of the Present and Future'', a collections of sermons (1871) * ''Political Science'' (1877) * ''Communism and Socialism'' (1880) * ''Helpful Thoughts for Young Men'' (1882)

Family and legacy

Woolsey married twice and had a total of 13 children. On 5 September 1833, he married Martha Salisbury, who was born 30 November 1812 and died 3 November 1852. Their children were: # Edward Salisbury Woolsey was born 10 June 1834, but died from

scarlet fever Scarlet fever, also known as Scarlatina, is an infectious disease caused by '' Streptococcus pyogenes'' a Group A streptococcus (GAS). The infection is a type of Group A streptococcal infection (Group A strep). It most commonly affects chi ...

on 17 December 1843. # Elizabeth Woolsey was born 30 November 1835, but died in the same scarlet fever epidemic on the same day as her two brothers. # Agnes Woolsey was born 30 June 1838, married Edgar Laing Heermance (1833–1888), had three children and died in 1915. # William Walton Woolsey was born 12 June 1840, and died in the 1843 scarlet fever epidemic. # Laura Woolsey was born 22 June 1842 but died of

typhoid fever Typhoid fever, also known as typhoid, is a disease caused by '' Salmonella'' serotype Typhi bacteria. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often there is a gradual onset of a high fever over severa ...

on 23 March 1861. # Catherine Woolsey was born 17 January 1845 but died 7 June 1854. # Martha Woolsey was born 7 July 1847 but died 6 December 1870. # Helen Woolsey was born 7 August 1849 but died 8 December 1870. # Theodore Salisbury Woolsey was born 22 October 1852 and died 24 April 1929. Theodore Dwight Woolsey statue Highsmith

Theodore Dwight Woolsey statue Highsmith

On 6 September 1854, Woolsey married Sarah Sears Prichard, who was born 3 March 1824 and died in 1900. Their children were: # Mary Pritchard Woolsey born 1 September 1855, married Alfred Terry Bacon and died in 1931. # John Muirson Woolsey was born 13 February 1858 but died from typhoid fever 13 March 1861. # George Woolsey was born 2 May 1861. # Edith Woolsey was born 2 July 1864. Woolsey died 1 July 1889 in New Haven. Woolsey was a descendant of George (Joris) Woolsey, one of the earliest settlers of

New Amsterdam New Amsterdam ( nl, Nieuw Amsterdam, or ) was a 17th-century Dutch settlement established at the southern tip of Manhattan Island that served as the seat of the colonial government in New Netherland. The initial trading ''factory'' gave rise ...

, and Thomas Cornell (settler).Cornell, Thomas Clap
''Adam and Anne Mott: their ancestors and their descendants''"> ''Adam and Anne Mott: their ancestors and their descendants''
A.V. Haight, 1890 Retrieved November 10, 2013 Woolsey Hall at Yale, completed in 1901, and Woolsey Street in

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134 ...

are named in his honor. The statue erected in Woolsey's memory, now displayed on Yale's

Old Campus The Old Campus is the oldest area of the Yale University campus in New Haven, Connecticut. It is the principal residence of Yale College freshmen and also contains offices for the academic departments of Classics, English, History, Comparative Li ...

, has a golden toe from being rubbed for good luck.

References

External links

* * Kelley, Brooks Mather. (1999)
''Yale: A History.''
New Haven:

Yale University Press Yale University Press is the university press of Yale University. It was founded in 1908 by George Parmly Day, and became an official department of Yale University in 1961, but it remains financially and operationally autonomous. , Yale Univers ...

.
OCLC 810552
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Woolsey, Theodore Dwight Educators from New York City Yale College alumni American legal writers American classical scholars American book editors 1801 births 1889 deaths Presidents of Yale University Burials at Grove Street Cemetery Cornell family Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Classical scholars of Yale University Scholars of ancient Greek literature Woolsey family

Biography

Family and legacy

See also

References

External links