Frederick A. P. Barnard | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 10th President ofColumbia University | |
| In office 1864–1889 | |
| Preceded by | Charles King |
| Succeeded by | Seth Low |
| 3rd Chancellor of theUniversity of Mississippi | |
| In office 1856–1861 | |
| Preceded by | Augustus Baldwin Longstreet |
| Succeeded by | John Newton Waddel |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1809-05-05)May 5, 1809 Sheffield, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Died | April 27, 1889(1889-04-27) (aged 79) New York City, U.S. |
| Spouse | Margaret McMurray |
| Relations | John G. Barnard (brother) |
| Alma mater | Yale University |
Frederick Augustus Porter Barnard (May 5, 1809 – April 27, 1889) was an American academic and educator who served as the 10thPresident of Columbia University. Born inSheffield, Massachusetts, he graduated from Yale University in 1828 and served in a succession of academic appointments, including asChancellor of theUniversity of Mississippi from 1856 to 1861. He assumed office as President of Columbia University in 1864, where he presided over a series of improvements to the university until his death in 1889.Barnard College was named after him.[1] He was also known as an author of academic texts.
He was born on May 5, 1809, in Sheffield, Massachusetts. His brother,John G. Barnard, was a career officer in theUnited States Army who served as the superintendent of theUnited States Military Academy and later as a general in the Union Army during theAmerican Civil War. Barnard had a hereditary form of deafness that intensified in his later years, along with his brother and most of his family.
He graduated fromYale University in 1828, where he pursued astronomical studies and was a member of theLinonian Society.
Barnard became a tutor at Yale following his graduation in 1828. He later served as a teacher at theAmerican Asylum for the Deaf and Dumb atHartford, Connecticut between 1831 and 1832, and at theNew York Institute for the Instruction of the Deaf and Dumb between 1832 and 1838.[2]
He taught at theUniversity of Alabama in various capacities from 1838 to 1854, where he was a professor ofmathematics andnatural philosophy until 1848, and a professor ofchemistry andnatural history thereafter. He also filled the chair of English literature during his time at the university.[3]
Barnard was ordained as adeacon in theProtestant Episcopal Church in 1854. In the same year he took up position as a professor of mathematics and natural philosophy at theUniversity of Mississippi, where he eventually assumed the office of chancellor from 1856 through to the outbreak of theAmerican Civil War in 1861, when he resigned due to hisUnionist sympathies. During his time at the university he was subject to scrutiny from the board of trustees for taking the testimony of a slave against that of a student who had allegedly assaulted her.[4]
He was sent toLabrador in 1860 to observe aneclipse of the sun; in 1862 he worked on the reduction ofGilliss's observations of stars in theSouthern Hemisphere, and in 1863 he supervised the publication of maps and charts of theUnited States Coast Survey. He was elected as an Associate Fellow of theAmerican Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1860;[5] as president of theAmerican Association for the Advancement of Science in 1866, as a member of the Board of Experts of theAmerican Bureau of Mines in 1865, and as a member of theAmerican Institute in 1872.[6][7] He also gained membership in theAmerican Philosophical Society in 1871.[8]
He served as the 10th President ofColumbia College (nowColumbia University) in New York City, holding office for an unprecedented term of 25 years from 1864 to 1889 - longer than that of any of his predecessors. During this period the college experienced rapid growth. New departments were established; the elective system was greatly extended, greater provisions were made for graduate study and original research, and enrolment increased from approximately 150 students to over 1000.[citation needed]
Barnard himself served as a scholar of English and theclassics, and as an expert in the fields of mathematics, physics, and chemistry. He was known as a skilled public speaker, with his annual reports to the Board of Trustees including valuable discussions of educational problems.[citation needed]
He also served as the co-editor-in-chief ofJohnson's New Universal Cyclopaedia (1876), alongsideArnold Henry Guyot.[9] Other texts authored by Barnard, includeTreatise on Arithmetic (1830),Analytical Grammar with Symbolic Illustration (1836),Letters on Collegiate Government (1855),History of the United States Coast Survey (1857),Recent Progress in Science (1869), andThe Metric System (1871).
He died on April 27, 1889, in New York City.[10][11] In his will, the bulk of his estate was left toColumbia College.[12]
Barnard strove to extend educational privileges to women that were normally reserved for men, and the establishment ofBarnard Women's College, following his death, was done so in his honor.[13]
Oliver-Barnard Hall, on theUniversity of Alabama campus, is partly named in his honor.[14]
Barnard Observatory, one of the few buildings of theUniversity of Mississippi that survived theAmerican Civil War, is also named in his honor.[15]
The Barnard Medal for Meritorious Service to Science was established in 1889 according to the instructions of his will, and has been awarded by Columbia University every five years, beginning in 1895.
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Media related toFrederick Augustus Porter Barnard at Wikimedia Commons
| Academic offices | ||
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| Preceded by | Chancellors of the University of Mississippi 1856–1861 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | President of Columbia College 1864–1889 | Succeeded by |
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