Nathan Lord (November 28, 1793 – September 9, 1870) was an American

Congregational Congregationalism (also Congregational Churches or Congregationalist Churches) is a Reformed Christianity, Reformed Christian (Calvinist) tradition of Protestant Christianity in which churches practice Congregationalist polity, congregational ...

clergyman and educator who served as president of

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College ( ) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, Dartmouth is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the America ...

for more than three decades.

Biography

Nathan Lord was born in

Berwick, Maine Berwick is a town in York County, Maine, United States, situated in the southern part of the state beside the Salmon Falls River. Today's South Berwick was set off from Berwick in 1814, while North Berwick was partitioned from the town in 18 ...

. He graduated from

Bowdoin College Bowdoin College ( ) is a Private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Brunswick, Maine. It was chartered in 1794. The main Bowdoin campus is located near Casco Bay and the Androscoggin River. In a ...

in 1809, and attended

Andover Theological Seminary Andover Theological Seminary (1807–1965) was a Congregationalist seminary founded in 1807 and originally located in Andover, Massachusetts on the campus of Phillips Academy. From 1908 to 1931, it was located at Harvard University in Cambrid ...

, serving afterwards as a pastor at the Congregationalist Church in

Amherst, Massachusetts Amherst () is a city in Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Connecticut River valley. Amherst has a council–manager form of government, and is considered a city under Massachusetts state law. Amherst is one of several Massach ...

for twelve years. In 1828 he became the sixth president of

serving in this capacity from 1828 to 1863. Lord brought the college out of debt and made controversial changes to the curriculum. His "non-ambitious system" banned all academic honors and distinctions and enjoyed the support of the Trustees of Dartmouth, but faced significant criticism. He was a founding member of the

American Anti-Slavery Society The American Anti-Slavery Society (AASS) was an Abolitionism in the United States, abolitionist society in the United States. AASS formed in 1833 in response to the nullification crisis and the failures of existing anti-slavery organizations, ...

, and in 1833 served as the Vice President of the New Hampshire delegation to the National Anti-Slavery Convention. He admitted black students to Dartmouth College and was a friend of

William Lloyd Garrison William Lloyd Garrison (December , 1805 – May 24, 1879) was an Abolitionism in the United States, American abolitionist, journalist, and reformism (historical), social reformer. He is best known for his widely read anti-slavery newspaper ''The ...

. However, after Garrison challenged the Bible on its alleged endorsement of slavery, deeply religious Lord began to question his support of the abolitionist movement and its cause. His views on slavery changed dramatically by the time he gave a eulogy for

John Quincy Adams John Quincy Adams (; July 11, 1767 – February 23, 1848) was the sixth president of the United States, serving from 1825 to 1829. He previously served as the eighth United States secretary of state from 1817 to 1825. During his long diploma ...

in 1848. In this address, and in later pamphlets published throughout the 1850s (e.g. ''A Letter of Inquiry, A True Picture of Abolition)'', he came to see slavery as "not a moral evil", but as a blessing, "an ordinance of...God", which "providentially found a settlement in this country". These views, and his opposition to the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

, which he blamed on

abolitionists Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the political movement to end slavery and liberate enslaved individuals around the world. The first country to fully outlaw slavery was France in 1315, but it was later used in its colonies. T ...

, brought a storm of controversy, earning him the enmity of several members of the Dartmouth Board of Trustees, including

Amos Tuck Amos Tuck (August 2, 1810 – December 11, 1879) was an American attorney and politician in New Hampshire and a founder of the Republican Party in New Hampshire. Early life and education Born in Parsonsfield, Maine, August 2, 1810, the son ...

(1835), a founding member of the Republican Party and close friend of

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the 16th president of the United States, serving from 1861 until Assassination of Abraham Lincoln, his assassination in 1865. He led the United States through the American Civil War ...

. Matters came to a head in 1863 when the Trustees were deadlocked on awarding an honorary degree to

President Lincoln Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the 16th president of the United States, serving from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. He led the United States through the American Civil War, defeating the Confederate State ...

, and Lord broke the tie by voting against it. The Trustees issued a statement: "Neither the trustees nor the Faculty coincide with the president of the College in the views which he has published, touching slavery and the war; and it has been our hope that the College would not be judged a partisan institution by reason of such publications." Lord, 70, tendered his resignation. He continued to publish anti-abolitionist materials from his home in

Hanover, New Hampshire Hanover is a New England town, town located along the Connecticut River in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, its population was 11,870. The town is home to the Ivy League university ...

, until his death in 1870.

Family

He married Elizabeth King Leland (1792-1870) and they had ten children; his youngest son, Nathan Lord Jr., (1831-1885), was a colonel of the 6th Regiment of Vermont Volunteers in the Civil War. Vermont in the Civil War: A history of the part taken by the Vermont soldiers and sailors in the war for the Union, 1861-5, by G. G. Benedict.
Burlington, Vt.: Free Press Association, 1886-1888

References

External links

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Nathan Lord, President, 1828-1863
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lord, Nathan 1792 births 1870 deaths Bowdoin College alumni Presidents of Dartmouth College People of New Hampshire in the American Civil War American proslavery activists American Anti-Slavery Society People from Berwick, Maine

Biography

Family

References

Further reading

External links