At the beginning of the seventeenth century in England, the university had become an integral institution, instilling Englishmen with rhetoric, logic and the ability to live a learned, pious life. Due to the easy availability of higher learning, a good number of university men were among the first settlers in America, particularly in Puritan New England. By 1648, there were about 130 colonists in New England who had obtained a college degree, and many other colonies, notably Virginia, had a large share of university men. However, there was a lack of educational institutions in the colonies and, prior to 1670, many sons of the settlers returned to England to pursue higher study at Cambridge or Oxford. However, travel to England was risky and expensive, and many a young man turned to apprenticeship for higher education, particularly to study law or medicine. Unfortunately, those who were interested in pursuing a lifetime of divinity had no choice but to pursue a formal higher education, thus providing the impetus for founding American colleges.
Less than 20 years after the first Puritans arrived in Massachusetts, they realized the need to have their own college to provide a literate ministry for future generations. Although founded primarily to teach divinity and heavily influenced by the Puritans, Harvard (and other early colleges) were not one-denominational, nor were they used strictly as seminaries (although, at least in early years, that was their primary objective).
Harvard
Established in 1636, Harvard was based on the English model of a university but symbolized the first attempt to build a university by an American colony. The college, located in Newetowne (to be named Cambridge in 1638), was named after John Harvard, who bequeathed his entire library and half of his estate to the fledgling school. The first real growth of the school was under Henry Dunster, who was appointed President of Harvard in 1640. During his tutelage, the college established three buildings, a library, and obtained a formal charter granted by the Massachusetts General Court in 1650, which stated that the principle of Harvard was "the advancement of all good literature, arts and sciences' and the education of English and Indian Youth 'in knowledge: and godliness'" (Cremin, 213). During most of the seventeenth century, there were anywhere from 20 to 50 students at the college and most freshmen entered at age 16. Although most students were from New England, young men from England, Virginia, Bermuda and New Netherlands also attended. In its single break from the English tradition of education, Harvard granted degrees without the authority of the King of England. A break with the Puritan tradition came in 1708 when John Leverett was elected the first President of Harvard who was not also a clergyman.
| Here's the follow-up discussion on this article: | View all related messages |
For a complete listing of article comments, questions, and other discussions related to Jeannine Dugan's Colonial United States topic, please visit the Discussions page.