Joseph McKeen
Encyclopedia
Joseph McKeen was the first president of Bowdoin College
of Brunswick
, Maine
.
, a town that his father and grandfather, John and James, who had come from the north of Ireland in 1718 to escape religious and political oppression, had helped to settle. He graduated from Dartmouth College
in 1774 when he was just seventeen years old. Except for a brief period when he fought under General John Sullivan
in the American Revolution
, he taught school in Londonderry until he became the Congregational minister of Beverly, Massachusetts
in 1785.
He remained in that position as minister until 1802, when he became president of Bowdoin. At the time, Massachusetts Hall was the only building available for officers and pupils on campus. In his inaugural address, he famously said that "Literary institutions are founded and endowed for the common good, and not for the private advantage of those who resort to them for education." Bowdoin's annual Common Good Day for community service refers to this statement. He remained president until his death in 1807.
He received a Doctor of Divinity degree from Dartmouth in 1803. Most of Dr. McKeen's publications consist of papers in the "Transactions of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences" and some occasional sermons.
Bowdoin College
Bowdoin College , founded in 1794, is an elite private liberal arts college located in the coastal Maine town of Brunswick, Maine. As of 2011, U.S. News and World Report ranks Bowdoin 6th among liberal arts colleges in the United States. At times, it was ranked as high as 4th in the country. It is...
of Brunswick
Brunswick, Maine
Brunswick is a town in Cumberland County, Maine, United States. The population was 20,278 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Portland-South Portland-Biddeford metropolitan area. Brunswick is home to Bowdoin College, the Bowdoin College Museum of Art, the Peary-MacMillan Arctic Museum, , and the...
, Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
.
Life and career
McKeen was born in Londonderry, New HampshireLondonderry, New Hampshire
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 23,236 people, 7,623 households, and 6,319 families residing in the town. The population density was 555.8 people per square mile . There were 7,718 housing units at an average density of 184.6 per square mile...
, a town that his father and grandfather, John and James, who had come from the north of Ireland in 1718 to escape religious and political oppression, had helped to settle. He graduated from Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...
in 1774 when he was just seventeen years old. Except for a brief period when he fought under General John Sullivan
John Sullivan
John Sullivan was the third son of Irish immigrants, a United States general in the Revolutionary War, a delegate in the Continental Congress and a United States federal judge....
in the American Revolution
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
, he taught school in Londonderry until he became the Congregational minister of Beverly, Massachusetts
Beverly, Massachusetts
Beverly is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 39,343 on , which differs by no more than several hundred from the 39,862 obtained in the 2000 census. A resort, residential and manufacturing community on the North Shore, Beverly includes Beverly Farms and Prides...
in 1785.
He remained in that position as minister until 1802, when he became president of Bowdoin. At the time, Massachusetts Hall was the only building available for officers and pupils on campus. In his inaugural address, he famously said that "Literary institutions are founded and endowed for the common good, and not for the private advantage of those who resort to them for education." Bowdoin's annual Common Good Day for community service refers to this statement. He remained president until his death in 1807.
He received a Doctor of Divinity degree from Dartmouth in 1803. Most of Dr. McKeen's publications consist of papers in the "Transactions of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences" and some occasional sermons.
Legacy
Bowdoin College inaugurated the Joseph McKeen Center for the Common Good in September 2008. The center provides programs for students, faculty, and staff to engage with the community through volunteerism, community-based teaching and research, and summer and post-graduate internships and fellowships. A large plaque that quotes a portion of McKeen's inaugural address is displayed in the center's hallway.External links
- http://www.bowdoin.edu/mckeen-center
- http://library.bowdoin.edu/arch/mss/emsg.shtml
- http://library.bowdoin.edu/arch/archives/jmg.shtml