The president of Willamette serves as the chief executive officer, and is appointed by the Board of Trustees. The president is tasked with implementing the strategic plan and progressing toward stated goals. The president also oversees academic matters, campus operations and functions. Past presidents also served the University as part of the faculty. Francis S. Hoyt was appointed as the first president in 1853.
This collection contains the correspondence and administrative records produced by the Willamette University Office of the President. Records date from Willamette's first president Francis S. Hoyt, appointed in 1853. The majority of the material is correspondence regarding university matters such as finances, endowment, university policy, student concerns and faculty business. Also included are business documents, accounting records, and board of trustees related material.
Materials are arranged in chronological or original order.
This collection has been arranged into record groups to reflect material gathered by each president.
Smith, Hudson, and Pelton's records are currently closed to researchers. All other records are open.
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[Identification of item], Willamette University Office of the President records, Archives and Special Collections, Mark O. Hatfield Library, Willamette University.
Additions to this collection are expected.
Related collections also include the
Francis S. Hoyt was born on November 5, 1822 in Lyndon, Vermont. He received his bachelor's and master's degrees from Wesleyan University, and later became the principal of the Wesleyan Institute. In 1850, the 28 year old minister traveled from the east coast to replace Reverend Nehemiah Doane as principal and teacher of the Oregon Institute. He also served as a librarian for the territorial library and editor of the
Alvin Waller was born in Abington, Pennsylvania on May 8, 1808. He arrived in Oregon aboard the
This is a copy of a letter that President Francis Hoyt wrote to Alvin Waller in 1857. Hoyt expressed his frustration with the lack of funding at the University to provide for necessary teaching materials including a library. Hoyt made his frustration with the Board of Trustees apparent and expressed his desire to immediately leave the presidency. Hoyt ultimately stayed on as President for three more years. This letter has been digitized and transcribed.
Nelson Rounds was a Methodist Episcopal Minister and President of Willamette University from 1868 to 1870. He was born on May 4, 1807 in New York. Rounds was a graduate of Union College in New York, received his Doctor of Divinity from Hamilton University in 1833, and was given an honorary degree from Wesleyan University. On March 26, 1835, he and Mary Comfort married. They had 13 children. Rounds served as Professor of Ancient Languages at Cazenovia Seminary in 1836, editor of the Northern Christian Advocate from 1844-1848, and presiding elder of several important districts in the church. In 1868, he was appointed President of Willamette University, as well as Professor of Ancient Language and Moral Philosophy. Rounds left Willamette University for the state of Washington in 1870. He passed away on January 2, 1874.
This collection consists of letters from Willamette University Board of Trustee member, Gustavus Hines, to Rounds, encouraging him to accept the Presidency of Willamette University. In his letters, Hines discusses the opinions of Trustee members regarding Rounds' potential appointment. Hines also discusses travel opportunities to get from Rounds' home in New York to San Francisco via the Isthmus of Panama. Two letters from Rounds' son-in-law, Leland, are included. Also included are Rounds' contract with the University, an expense list from Rounds' move to Oregon and resolutions regarding student activities. These documents have been digitized and transcribed.
This group is organized into two series: Series I. Correspondence and Series II: Official Documents.
Correspondence contains letters between Gustavus Hines and Nelson Rounds regarding Rounds' appointment to President of Willamette University. Also included are two letters from Rounds' son-in-law, Leland Huntley, expressing sympathy about Rounds' dismissal from Willamette University and discussing family matters.
Materials are arranged in chronological order.
Leland was the husband of Rounds' daughter Henrietta Elizabeth. In the letters, he mentions two of Rounds' thirteen children, Martha and John.
Documents include Rounds' contract, moving expenses from New York, and resolutions regarding student tardiness and Literary Society meetings.
Materials are arranged in chronological order.
George Whitaker, A.M., D.D, was born on May 14, 1836 in Boston, Massachusetts. He graduated from Wesleyan University in 1861 with a Bachelor of Arts degree and received a Master of Arts from Wesleyan in 1864. In 1888 Whitaker received a Doctor of Divinity from Fort Worth University, Texas. Succeeding Dr. Thomas Van Scoy at Willamette University, Whitaker served as president for two years from the fall of 1891 until September 1893 when he resigned over a disagreement relating to the administration of the University. After leaving Willamette, Whitaker resumed pastoral duties until 1899 when he was hired as president of Portland University, where he helped work out a merger with Willamette University as the Portland school closed in 1900. Returning to Massachusetts, Whitaker served as pastor in Cambridge, Lowell, Linden and Orient Heights. He was active in civic affairs and also served as the librarian of the New England Methodist Historical Society. George Whitaker died in 1917.
The bulk of George Whitaker's papers consist of correspondence created during Whitaker's time as Willamette University's president. The collection is comprised mainly of incoming correspondence, invoices and telegrams regarding the day to day management of the University. President Whitaker identified these papers as either "School Letters" or "Business Letters," a distinction retained in the series titles. While all documents relate to the business of the university, the school letters offer a more personal view of university administration while the business letters deal solely with sales, purchases and other administrative issues.
There are letters concerned with orders for books and various school supplies, advertising offers, accounts and bills, and offers for Willamette University to be placed in directories. There are also letters relating to the Willamette University fire of 1891, the World's Columbian Exposition, 1893, various Methodist publications and meetings, train travel, a flag, and properties pertaining to Willamette University. The materials give a clear view of the business practices of Willamette University in the early 1890s.
Papers are arranged in original and/or chronological order.
These documents deal with various university related issues such as requests for catalogs; enquiries about tuition costs and housing on campus; letters from parents regarding the behavior of their children; letters from prospective teachers and other staff workers; correspondence about Willamette University's participation in the World's Fair: Columbian Exposition in 1893.
25 August letter from an anonymous woman requesting a 'water closet' be built by the shacks used as housing by the male students, so young women will not be embarrassed by young men making use of the bushes instead.
Four letters from a Mr. G. G. Newson regarding the discrepancy between the university's charges and what Mr. Newson's son said had already been paid. Although Whitaker's replies are not available, a reader is able to follow the narrative.
A letter from Reverend Bell warning against Evangelist Maria Woodworth-Etter who was coming to Salem and recommending Whitaker to write to E. R. Dille in Oakland, California about his experience with her work in his city. There is also a letter from Reverend Dille warning Whitaker against Woodworth-Etter.
A letter from Reverend Bell warning against Evangelist Maria Woodworth-Etter who was coming to Salem and recommending Whitaker to write to E. R. Dille in Oakland, California about his experience with her work in his city. There is also a letter from Reverend Dille warning Whitaker against Woodworth-Etter.
Letter discussing the views of Mr. Asahel Bush, of the Salem bank Ladd & Bush, regarding the university split and the Portland campus.
Letter discussing the views of Mr. Asahel Bush, of the Salem bank Ladd and Bush, regarding the university split and the Portland campus.
Acknowledgement of application for space at the World's Columbian Exposition, 1893.
Autographed letter from Oregon Senator J. N. Dolph.
Letter from Garrett Biblical Institute offering rooms for "gentlemen" wishing to attend the World's Columbian Exposition.
Letter from the Director-General of the World's Columbian Exposition. Also an autographed letter from Oregon Senator J. N. Dolph.
Letter from the Director-General of the World's Columbian Exposition.
Labels to use in shipping items to the World's Columbian Exposition.
Labels to use in shipping items to the World's Columbian Exposition.
These letters are mostly concerned with orders for books and various school supplies, advertising offers, accounts and bills, and offers for Willamette University to be placed in directories. There are also letters relating to the University Hall fire of 1891, the World's Fair: Columbian Exposition 1893, various Methodist publications and meetings, train travel, a flag, and properties pertaining to Willamette University.
Letter regarding the rebuilding of University Hall and bids from out of state contractors.
Letter regarding the rebuilding of University Hall and bids from out of state contractors.
Autographed letter from Senator J.N. Dolph.
Letter from the Director-General of the World's Columbian Exposition regarding a permit for exposition space.
Labels for shipping items to World's Columbian Exposition.
John Coleman was born in Northampton, New York, in 1847. Educated at the Montpelier Seminary in Vermont, Coleman also received honorary degrees from both Syracuse and Nebraska Wesleyan. Coleman was 55 years of age when he was appointed to the office of president on February 11, 1902. Coleman had the task of liquidating $35,000 worth of debt and then initiating a campaign to raise a $100,000 endowment fund. Although $35,000 was pledged a little over a year, Coleman toiled for all six years of his presidency to collect the money. Securing a new academic building was also on Coleman's list. He even sought funding from Andrew Carnegie in the amount of $40,000 only to be turned down and informed that Willamette "may be a university in embryo, but it certainly does not seem to be yet a university." He resigned on February 18, 1908, following a growing difference of opinion with the Board of Trustees. Coleman had maintained an active membership in the New York-based Troy Conference of the M.E. Church so, after leaving WU, he returned to administrative work with the Methodist church. Coleman died on October 20, 1914.
This material includes correspondence to Coleman regarding payment of tuition and requests to attend Willamette.
Reverend Fletcher Homan, D.D. was the eleventh president of Willamette University, serving from 1908 to 1914. He was born in Iowa in 1868 and received both his Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts from Simpson College in Indianola, Iowa. He later earned a Bachelor of Sacred Theology from the Garrett Biblical Institute in Evanston, Illinois. Before becoming a Methodist minister in 1898, Homan spent several years in the mercantile business. When offered the position at Willamette, he was acting as the Vice President of Simpson College, his alma mater, and his primary responsibilities were financial affairs. Homan's predecessor at Willamette University, J.H. Coleman initiated an endowment campaign to ensure that, for the first time, the university would have a solid financial backing. Under Homan's guidance, the endowment reached its $500,000 goal. In addition to the completion of the endowment campaign, Homan's tenure saw the construction of Eaton Hall, the liberal arts building funded by a donation from A.E. Eaton, proprietor of the Union Woolen Mills and a prominent Methodist in Oregon. Despite Homan's accomplishments for the university, his approach to running its daily operations caused friction between himself and the students and faculty. He resigned his position as university president in June of 1914 and was offered a one-year, paid leave of absence.
The primary portion of the collection documents Reverend Fletcher Homan's tenure as President of Willamette University from 1908 to 1914. The correspondence in the collection includes materials dated 1902 to 1923. The records consist of incoming and outgoing correspondence, financial records, Board of Trustee meeting minutes, newspaper articles, a copy of Willamette University's original charter and the original specifications for Eaton Hall. Folders contain both typed and handwritten letters as well as carbon copies. The folder list below provides specific details of the contents of the folders.
Topics addressed in this collection include faculty salaries, commencement exercises, details about operation of the Board of Trustees and university financial matters that provide insight into Homan's role as administrator and fund raiser. Details about the endowment campaign and the construction of Eaton Hall can also be found in the collection.
The organization reflects original order and is arranged chronologically by folder title.
Oregon State Senator, 1900 to 1908, Robert Asbury Booth served as a member of the Board of Trustees for Willamette University and was a major contributor to the endowment campaign. Booth also provided funding to bring Francis Hoyt, the first president of Willamette University, to give the 1911 commencement address. The correspondence shows that Homan relied on Booth for advice on many issues related to Willamette University including the endowment campaign, the Willamette University's Board of Trustees, and the restructuring of the university campus. The folder also includes a letter from F.S. Hoyt thanking Booth for his generosity.
John Hamline Coleman was the president of Willamette University from 1902 to 1908. Correspondence includes discussion of the Medical College of Willamette University , the donation of funds and preliminary plans for Eaton Hall, the beginnings of the endowment campaign, and the impact of the Panama Canal on Oregon institutions of higher education.
An article detailing the progress of the endowment campaign.
Dohse worked for the Department of Interior, United States Indian Service at the Chemawa Indian School. Correspondence is in regard to a former Chemawa student who transferred to the Willamette Academy.
Abel E. Eaton was a member of the Board of Trustees and the donor who funded the construction of Eaton Hall. Main topic of correspondence is the construction of Eaton Hall, including discussion of plans and specifications, the laying of the cornerstone, payment of workers, the dedication ceremony, and other related topics.
Folder contains the guarantee of the original heating plant contractors, Steiner & Berger signed in 1909 and the specifications for refitting the heating work of Eaton Hall, drawn up by A.E. Doyle, Architect of Portland, Oregon in 1923.
Correspondence on a variety of subjects including courses taught at Willamette University, institutional history, current and prospective students, fund raising efforts, and the endowment campaign.
U. S. Congressman, 1907 to 1932, Willis C. Hawley held a variety of positions with Willamette University, including University President from 1891 to 1902 and a member of the Board of Trustees. Folder includes general correspondence regarding Eaton Hall, politics, and university finances.
Heritage was the Dean of College of Music. Correspondence is in regard to general business of the College of Music, and allegations about Heritage's moral character and conduct, which ultimately resulted in his removal as Dean.
Francis Hoyt was the first president of Willamette University from 1853 to 1860. The letters are regarding his travel arrangements from Cincinnati to Salem in order to give the commencement address of 1911.
Correspondence related to the organization of an inter-collegiate athletic league.
McDaniel served as the president of the Board of Trustees. Noteworthy topics in the correspondence are the Orphan Scholarship Fund and the endowment campaign.
McDaniel served as the president of the Board of Trustees. Noteworthy topics in the correspondence are the Orphan Scholarship Fund and the endowment campaign.
Frederic S. Mendenhall was the Dean of the College of Music from 1909 to 1914. Correspondence includes notice of election as Dean and subsequent letter of acceptance, descriptions of the College of Music, including equipment, students and classes, and a brief biography of Mendenhall.
Folder includes a petition to "The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching," minutes from Board of Trustees meetings, and a supplement to the original articles of incorporation of Willamette University.
Folder includes a copy of the original charter given to Willamette University by the House of Representatives and the Counsel of the State of Oregon on January 12, 1853, minutes of a September, 1856 meeting on revising the Willamette University Constitution, report of an audit conducted in 1906, information about the proposed construction of Kimball School of Theology, annual reports from President Homan to the Board of Trustees and the Oregon Conference, the financial statement of the university for the year ending June 15, 1911, and further information regarding the petition to "The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching."
Nicholson was the Corresponding Secretary for the Board of Education of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Correspondence is about university funding, including student loans from the "Children's Day Fund", and the endowment campaign.
Minutes from a Board of Trustees meeting includes annual reports from the President and Dean, Willamette University Articles of Incorporation, and financial affairs.
Correspondence regarding Willamette University's degree requirements.
Peck established the biology program at Willamette University in 1908. Contains correspondence regarding Peck's nomination for the position of Professor of Biology. Also includes his telegraphed message accepting employment at Willamette University.
For more material about Peck, see the
Rader was the editor of the Pacific Christian Advocate newspaper. Folder contains correspondence about Willamette University's advertising and publicity and Rader's desire to receive an honorary Doctorate from Willamette University.
Rankin was the President of Willamette University's Board of Trustees when J. H. Coleman retired as President of Willamette University. Correspondence is about finances, faculty, construction on campus, and related topics.
Correspondence with Amedee M. Smith related to the construction of Eaton Hall.
Sweetland was the Athletic Director of Willamette University. Topics of correspondence include salary, description of responsibilities, plans for athletic teams and facilities, and opportunities to study medicine.
Tillman was a professor of Chemistry at Willamette University. General correspondence regards department finances and payment of salary.
Tourtellotte was the architect of Eaton Hall. Contains original, signed set of "Specification of the material and labor to be used in the erection of a Liberal Arts Building "Eaton Hall," and correspondence related to its design and construction.
Correspondence regarding reduced fares for parochial schools.
Von Eschen was a professor of Chemistry and Physics at Willamette University. Correspondence includes his letter accepting the position, general facts about Willamette University, salary, books to be ordered for classes, and other related topics.
Carl Gregg Doney, 1867-1955, was born in Columbus, Ohio. He graduated from Ohio State University with a B. A. and legal degree. After practicing the law briefly, Doney entered the ministry of the Methodist Church in 1893. He pastored a number of churches, and then went to West Virginia Wesleyan College in 1907 as President.
Doney came to Willamette University in 1915, taking charge of an institution in need of new buildings and better support for faculty and staff. During his tenure Doney oversaw the building of a new Lausanne Hall and gymnasium. A second fire in Waller Hall in 1919 also resulted in the rebuilding of Willamette University's first building. He also set in motion the process to raise the monies for these buildings and organized a committee to add $1,250,000 to the university endowment.
Doney stepped down as President in 1934 and retired in Columbus, Ohio. He died in 1955.
Correspondence produced by Doney's office, and Doney himself, dealing with Willamette University business and personal matters. The detailed correspondence in the collection provides a clear picture of Doney's involvement in every area of university affairs. One example of this is correspondence received in the summer of 1929 regarding a stand Doney took towards a theater production being presented on a Sunday in the Salem Methodist Church. He refused permission and received several letters of support over the course of the summer.
Materials are arranged in chronological or original order.
Correspondence in this folder in original order. Most deal with matters of curriculum at Willamette University.
Correspondence with attorneys regarding land owned by Willamette University.
Architect of Lausanne Hall.
Regarding the construction of Lausanne Hall.
Regarding the construction of Lausanne Hall.
Regarding the construction of Lausanne Hall.
Regarding the construction of Lausanne Hall.
Copy of Doney's autobiography.
Dr. Carl Doney's Message to Alumni and Friends of Willamette University, Columbus Ohio: 1950 April 21