John Christopher Hartwick
Encyclopedia
John Christopher Hartwick (January 6, 1714 – July 17, 1796) was a Lutheran minister
in Colonial America
and founder of Hartwick College
.
in the province of Thuringia
in
Germany
and studied at the University of Halle. He was educated in the Lutheran Pietism movement
. Hartwick emigrate
d to America in 1746 to serve as a missionary to the German settlers in and around Rhinebeck in New York
’s Hudson Valley
.
He was an eccentric idealist and intolerant of parishioner's vice
s, requiring them to sign a promise that they would "forswear shooting, horse-racing, boozing, and dancing." He was forcefully removed from his first parish by fellow ministers of the area, and from there moved around the northern colonies, unable to find a congregation that would put up with his pious intolerance.
n community
dedicated to the principles of pious living. He made a series of land deals and eventually obtained a nearly 24,000 acre
(97 km²) patent
from the Mohawk
Indians
in Otsego County, New York
located southwest of what would become Cooperstown, New York
.
The first attempt toward a permanent settlement on the site was made by Hartwick in 1761. Hartwick commissioned his neighboring landowner, Judge
William Cooper
, to lease his land to suitable Christian
settlers for the establishment of this "New Jerusalem
." But Cooper essentially ignored Hartwick's criteria, and leased the property indiscriminately. Most (if not all) of his tenants had little interest in Hartwick's utopian vision for the settlement. His holdings holdings would form the basis for the community of Hartwick, New York
.
In 1764 Hartwick wrote an article condemning the death penalty for theft as contrary to divine law. He believed there should be government-run educational schools to replace the exclusive private schools of the day. John Christopher Hartwick died during 1796 at Clermont Manor, the home of Robert R. Livingston.
. However he made the task difficult by designating Jesus Christ
as his heir. The seminary did not open until 15 years after his death.
Hartwick's choice as director of the seminary had been Dr. John Christopher Kunze
a leading Lutheran theologian. Prominent political and religious leaders Jeremiah Van Rensselaer
and Frederick Muhlenberg
convinced Dr. Kunze to direct the seminary and teach theology at his home in New York City
. Also benefiting from Hartwick's endowments were Rev. Anthony Braun who taught sciences and languages in Albany and Rev. John Frederick Ernst who taught elementary school on the Hartwick land patent.
The school first known as the Hartwick Seminary
, eventually became Hartwick College
. Hartwick College traces its founding to the death of John Christopher Hartwick in 1797. During the 1920s, the Trustees of Hartwick Seminary voted to close the seminary and use the funds to open a new college in the nearby city of Oneonta, New York
.
Minister of religion
In Christian churches, a minister is someone who is authorized by a church or religious organization to perform functions such as teaching of beliefs; leading services such as weddings, baptisms or funerals; or otherwise providing spiritual guidance to the community...
in Colonial America
Colonial America
The colonial history of the United States covers the history from the start of European settlement and especially the history of the thirteen colonies of Britain until they declared independence in 1776. In the late 16th century, England, France, Spain and the Netherlands launched major...
and founder of Hartwick College
Hartwick College
Hartwick College is a non-denominational, private, four-year liberal arts and sciences college located in Oneonta, New York, in the United States. The institution was founded as Hartwick Seminary in 1797 through the will of John Christopher Hartwick, and is now known as Hartwick College...
.
Background
Hartwick was a native of the dukedom of Saxe-GothaSaxe-Gotha
Saxe-Gotha was one of the Saxon duchies held by the Ernestine of the Wettin dynasty in the former Landgraviate of Thuringia. The ducal residence was erected at Gotha....
in the province of Thuringia
Thuringia
The Free State of Thuringia is a state of Germany, located in the central part of the country.It has an area of and 2.29 million inhabitants, making it the sixth smallest by area and the fifth smallest by population of Germany's sixteen states....
in
Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and studied at the University of Halle. He was educated in the Lutheran Pietism movement
Pietism
Pietism was a movement within Lutheranism, lasting from the late 17th century to the mid-18th century and later. It proved to be very influential throughout Protestantism and Anabaptism, inspiring not only Anglican priest John Wesley to begin the Methodist movement, but also Alexander Mack to...
. Hartwick emigrate
Emigrate
Emigrate is a heavy metal band based in New York, led by Richard Z. Kruspe, the lead guitarist of the German band Rammstein.-History:Kruspe started the band in 2005, when Rammstein decided to take a year off from touring and recording...
d to America in 1746 to serve as a missionary to the German settlers in and around Rhinebeck in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
’s Hudson Valley
Hudson Valley
The Hudson Valley comprises the valley of the Hudson River and its adjacent communities in New York State, United States, from northern Westchester County northward to the cities of Albany and Troy.-History:...
.
He was an eccentric idealist and intolerant of parishioner's vice
Vice
Vice is a practice or a behavior or habit considered immoral, depraved, or degrading in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a defect, an infirmity, or merely a bad habit. Synonyms for vice include fault, depravity, sin, iniquity, wickedness, and corruption...
s, requiring them to sign a promise that they would "forswear shooting, horse-racing, boozing, and dancing." He was forcefully removed from his first parish by fellow ministers of the area, and from there moved around the northern colonies, unable to find a congregation that would put up with his pious intolerance.
New Jerusalem
Hartwick felt that allowing the common person to own land and live so far from one another was the cause of their immorality. He envisioned a utopiaUtopia
Utopia is an ideal community or society possessing a perfect socio-politico-legal system. The word was imported from Greek by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book Utopia, describing a fictional island in the Atlantic Ocean. The term has been used to describe both intentional communities that attempt...
n community
Community
The term community has two distinct meanings:*a group of interacting people, possibly living in close proximity, and often refers to a group that shares some common values, and is attributed with social cohesion within a shared geographical location, generally in social units larger than a household...
dedicated to the principles of pious living. He made a series of land deals and eventually obtained a nearly 24,000 acre
Acre
The acre is a unit of area in a number of different systems, including the imperial and U.S. customary systems. The most commonly used acres today are the international acre and, in the United States, the survey acre. The most common use of the acre is to measure tracts of land.The acre is related...
(97 km²) patent
Patent
A patent is a form of intellectual property. It consists of a set of exclusive rights granted by a sovereign state to an inventor or their assignee for a limited period of time in exchange for the public disclosure of an invention....
from the Mohawk
Mohawk nation
Mohawk are the most easterly tribe of the Iroquois confederation. They call themselves Kanien'gehaga, people of the place of the flint...
Indians
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
in Otsego County, New York
Otsego County, New York
Otsego County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. The 2010 population was 62,259. The county seat is Cooperstown. The name Otsego is from a Mohawk word meaning "place of the rock."-History:...
located southwest of what would become Cooperstown, New York
Cooperstown, New York
Cooperstown is a village in Otsego County, New York, USA. It is located in the Town of Otsego. The population was estimated to be 1,852 at the 2010 census.The Village of Cooperstown is the county seat of Otsego County, New York...
.
The first attempt toward a permanent settlement on the site was made by Hartwick in 1761. Hartwick commissioned his neighboring landowner, Judge
Judge
A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as part of a panel of judges. The powers, functions, method of appointment, discipline, and training of judges vary widely across different jurisdictions. The judge is supposed to conduct the trial impartially and in an open...
William Cooper
William Cooper (judge)
William Cooper was the founder of Cooperstown, New York and father of writer James Fenimore Cooper, who apparently used his father as the pattern for the Judge Marmaduke Temple character in his book The Pioneers....
, to lease his land to suitable Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
settlers for the establishment of this "New Jerusalem
New Jerusalem
In the book of Ezekiel, the Prophecy of New Jerusalem is Ezekiel's prophetic vision of a city to be established to the south of the Temple Mount that will be inhabited by the twelve tribes of Israel in the...
." But Cooper essentially ignored Hartwick's criteria, and leased the property indiscriminately. Most (if not all) of his tenants had little interest in Hartwick's utopian vision for the settlement. His holdings holdings would form the basis for the community of Hartwick, New York
Hartwick, New York
Hartwick is a town located in Otsego County, New York, USA. As of the 2000 census, the town had a population of 2,203.Town of Hartwick is located in the middle of the county, southwest of Village of Cooperstown....
.
In 1764 Hartwick wrote an article condemning the death penalty for theft as contrary to divine law. He believed there should be government-run educational schools to replace the exclusive private schools of the day. John Christopher Hartwick died during 1796 at Clermont Manor, the home of Robert R. Livingston.
Hartwick College
Hartwick had benefited financially from Cooper’s indiscriminate leasing deals and left instructions in his will for the founding of a public seminarySeminary
A seminary, theological college, or divinity school is an institution of secondary or post-secondary education for educating students in theology, generally to prepare them for ordination as clergy or for other ministry...
. However he made the task difficult by designating Jesus Christ
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
as his heir. The seminary did not open until 15 years after his death.
Hartwick's choice as director of the seminary had been Dr. John Christopher Kunze
John Christopher Kunze
John Christopher Kunze was an American Lutheran minister, educator, author and theologian.-Biography:John Christopher Kunze was born in Artern, a town in the Kyffhäuserkreis district of Prussian Saxony. In 1758, when his parents died, he began studying at the orphanage in Halle, Germany...
a leading Lutheran theologian. Prominent political and religious leaders Jeremiah Van Rensselaer
Jeremiah Van Rensselaer
Jeremiah Van Rensselaer was a Representative from New York to the United States Congress. He was the cousin of Killian K...
and Frederick Muhlenberg
Frederick Muhlenberg
Frederick Augustus Conrad Muhlenberg was an American minister and politician who was the first Speaker of the United States House of Representatives. A delegate and a member of the U.S...
convinced Dr. Kunze to direct the seminary and teach theology at his home in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. Also benefiting from Hartwick's endowments were Rev. Anthony Braun who taught sciences and languages in Albany and Rev. John Frederick Ernst who taught elementary school on the Hartwick land patent.
The school first known as the Hartwick Seminary
Hartwick Seminary
Hartwick Seminary may refer to:* A hamlet in the Town of Hartwick about 5 miles south of Cooperstown, New York* The original name of Hartwick College, which was originally located in Hartwick, but is now in the nearby City of Oneonta...
, eventually became Hartwick College
Hartwick College
Hartwick College is a non-denominational, private, four-year liberal arts and sciences college located in Oneonta, New York, in the United States. The institution was founded as Hartwick Seminary in 1797 through the will of John Christopher Hartwick, and is now known as Hartwick College...
. Hartwick College traces its founding to the death of John Christopher Hartwick in 1797. During the 1920s, the Trustees of Hartwick Seminary voted to close the seminary and use the funds to open a new college in the nearby city of Oneonta, New York
Oneonta, New York
Oneonta is a city in southern Otsego County, New York, USA. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, had a population of 13,901. Its nickname is "City of the Hills." While the word "oneonta" is of undetermined origin, it is popularly believed to mean "place of open rocks" in the Iroquois language...
.
Other sources
- John Christopher Hartwick Society
- John Christopher Hartwick: Orthodoxy and Pietism
- Pioneers of Hartwick, New York
Other Reading
- Alan Taylor, William Cooper’s Town (1995)
- James Fenimore CooperJames Fenimore CooperJames Fenimore Cooper was a prolific and popular American writer of the early 19th century. He is best remembered as a novelist who wrote numerous sea-stories and the historical novels known as the Leatherstocking Tales, featuring frontiersman Natty Bumppo...
, The Chronicles of Cooperstown(1838)