Duane Doty (c. 1836–November 17, 1902) was an American educator, civil engineer, and administrator that served as superintendent of the public school systems in

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

and

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, and who worked for the Pullman Car Company as the town manager of their

company town A company town is a place where all or most of the stores and housing in the town are owned by the same company that is also the main employer. Company towns are often planned with a suite of amenities such as stores, houses of worship, schoo ...

of Pullman,

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

Early life

Doty was born in 1834 in

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

. His father was Samuel Doty. Doty attended the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

, graduating in 1856.

Career

Educational

Doty was hired in 1864 as superintendent of schools in Detroit. He held this job for ten years. Because the state's only normal school, the Michigan State Normal School, was producing an insufficient number of teachers to meet the demand in Detroit, in 1868 Doty launched an experimental teacher training course that was offered to select female seniors at Detroit high schools. Doty also attempted, unsuccessfully, to create a normal school in Detroit. Doty also served a stint as the secretary of the Detroit Board of Education. Doty was a staunch Democrat. In 1868, 1870 and 1874, Doty was the party's nominee for Michigan Superintendent of Public Instruction. In 1874, his candidacy was also backed by the Independent Reform Party. In January 1875, Doty joined the book buying firm of E. B. Smith & Co. He resigned as superintendent. Later in 1875, Doty moved to Chicago to serve as assistant superintendent of

Chicago Public Schools Chicago Public Schools (CPS), officially classified as City of Chicago School District #299 for funding and districting reasons, in Chicago, Illinois, is the List of the largest school districts in the United States by enrollment, fourth-large ...

, a job he was appointed to by the

Chicago Board of Education The Chicago Board of Education serves as the board of education (school board) for the Chicago Public Schools. The board traces its origins to the Board of School Inspectors, created in 1837. The board is currently made up of 11 members appoin ...

on September 14 of that year. From 1877 until 1880, he served as

superintendent of Chicago Public Schools Chicago Public Schools is headed by a chief executive officer (CEO) appointed by the mayor of Chicago. The most recent CEO was Pedro Martinez. This job is equivalent to a superintendent, and, before 1995, the occupant of this office was known ...

. He was appointed in June 1877 after the resignation of Josiah Little Pickard, who alleged that the Chicago Board of Education had pushed him out in order to appoint Doty, an allegation which Doty denied was true. On June 25, 1880, Doty was removed from office by the Chicago Board of Education, which installed Central High School principal George R. Howland as his successor. When the Board voted on a superintendent Doty had received four votes to Howland's nine votes. In 1885, Doty submitted an application with the

United States Department of the Interior The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government responsible for the management and conservation ...

seeking to be appointed as

United States commissioner of education The Commissioner of Education was the title given to the head of the federal Office of Education, which was historically a unit within and originally assigned to the Department of the Interior in the United States. The position was created on March ...

Pullman Car Company

After being fired as superintendent, Doty left the field of education, taking a job with the Pullman Car Company. He would serve as the inaugural town manager of the

of Pullman,

. Working as a

civil engineer A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering – the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructure while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing i ...

, he surveyed and plotted the layout of the town. He is also believed to possibly have shaped the vision for the town's schools. His wife, Margarita Doty, was involved in Pullman as well, including being responsible for writing an 1893 guide to the town, which spoke glowingly of it. Doty conducted reports and studies about railroads for the Pullman Car Company. Doty also, anonymously, did publicity work for Pullman Car Company.

Death

Doty died November 17, 1902, at his daughter's home in Pullman. He was survived by his daughter and his son.

Legacy

The

Duane Doty School The Duane Doty School is a school building located at 10225 3rd Street in Detroit, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2011. It is the oldest Arts and Crafts-style school building in Detroit, and likely one of ...

in Detroit is named for Doty. Doty Avenue, in the Pullman area of

, is named for Doty.

References

1830s births 1902 deaths Politicians from Chicago Politicians from Detroit Educators from Illinois Educators from Michigan Educators from Ohio University of Michigan alumni Superintendents of Chicago Public Schools Superintendents of Detroit Public Schools Community District Michigan Democrats Illinois Democrats {{Detroit Public Schools superintendents, state=collapsed