Thomas Anthony Thacher
Encyclopedia
Thomas Anthony Thacher, (January 11, 1815 - April 7, 1886), classicist and college administrator.
of Connecticut, since known as Yale College
. He had his preparatory training at the Hopkins Grammar School, Hartford, and graduated from Yale with the class of 1835; where he was a member of Skull and Bones
.
, and then went to a school in Georgia, which was later to become Oglethorpe University
. In all he spent three years teaching in two academies in Georgia
, returning to Yale College on Dec. 1, 1838, to take the position of tutor. He was appointed assistant professor of Latin and Greek in 1842 and one year later the title was restricted to Latin and he was given a year's leave of absence for study in Europe. This year was eventually extended to two years and from 1843 to 1845 he studied in Germany and Italy. While in Berlin he instructed the Crown Prince of Prussia
, and his cousin, Prince Frederick Charles. Six years after his return to Yale he was made professor of Latin. He was long a trustee of Hopkins Grammar School in New Haven and was a member of the state board of education 1866-77. He was on the committee for building the Yale Art School, serving with President Noah Porter
and Professor Daniel Coit Gilman
[qq.v.].
Thacher was identified with Yale College more closely than any of his contemporaries. President Timothy Dwight V
said of him, "His influence with the Faculty and the Corporation equaled or even surpassed that of any other College officer." This extraordinary position was due not primarily to his scholarship, although he had the reputation of being a sound and thorough scholar, but to his keen interest and constant activity in the management of college affairs both faculty and undergraduate. Before the day of deans, Thacher did much of the work which a dean would perform today. He was known as one of the best disciplinarians that the college ever had and yet he retained the devotion and affection of undergraduates to an extraordinary degree. As an undergraduate he had been "exuberant in spirit," and one who was a student under him in Yale writes of "Tutor Thacher, the florid and fiery, of perpetual youth and enthusiasm."
He and Professor Theodore Dwight Woolsey
[q.v.] were the first advocates at Yale of graduate instruction in non-technical fields and he himself was one of the first classicists to go abroad for the advancement of his scholarship. This scholarship was never very productive. He edited Cicero's De Officiis
in 1850, and largely as a result of his work with Karl Zumpt in Berlin he published in 1871 A Latin Grammar for the Use of Schools, a translation of the work of Johan Nikolai Madvig. Aside from these productions, a few slight essays and book reviews in the New Englander make up his professional output. A teacher always, rather than an investigator, he seems even to have had a slightly suspicious attitude toward those who gave too much time to research.
Even in his teaching he was possibly too much of a disciplinarian and was sometimes thought to stick too rigorously to the grammar. To his work as administrator, Thacher brought exceptional qualifications and in this line lay his great achievements. As a teacher he contributed his share to the department's prestige while, with his strong convictions and fearless courage, his energy in raising and administering funds, his interest in people, his wide acquaintance with Yale alumni, and his devout and conscientious character, he played a larger role in the building of modern Yale than that of any one of his contemporaries. -- Clarence W. Mendell
[q.v.] of Yale. She died on May 18, 1858, leaving five sons, and on Aug. 1, 1860, he married her cousin Elizabeth Baldwin Sherman, who with three sons and one daughter survived him. Both wives were granddaughters of Roger Sherman
.
His son Thomas Thacher
was a prominent lawyer. His sons Sherman Day Thacher
and William Larned Thacher were the founder of the Thacher School in Ojai, California
; and his daughter Elizabeth Sherman Thacher married William Kent (U.S. Congressman)
. He was also the paternal grandfather of US Solicitor General Thomas D. Thacher
and Molly Kazan
.
Early life
Thomas A. Thacher was born in Hartford, Conn., the son of Peter and Anne (Parks) Thacher. His first American ancestor on his father's side was Thomas Thacher who emigrated from England to Massachusetts in 1635, and later became minister of the Old South Church in Boston; on his mother's side he was descended from the Rev. Thomas Buckingham of Saybrook, one of the founders of the Collegiate SchoolYale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
of Connecticut, since known as Yale College
Yale College
Yale College was the official name of Yale University from 1718 to 1887. The name now refers to the undergraduate part of the university. Each undergraduate student is assigned to one of 12 residential colleges.-Residential colleges:...
. He had his preparatory training at the Hopkins Grammar School, Hartford, and graduated from Yale with the class of 1835; where he was a member of Skull and Bones
Skull and Bones
Skull and Bones is an undergraduate senior or secret society at Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut. It is a traditional peer society to Scroll and Key and Wolf's Head, as the three senior class 'landed societies' at Yale....
.
Career
For a short time he held a temporary teaching position in New Canaan, ConnecticutNew Canaan, Connecticut
New Canaan is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States, northeast of Stamford, on the Fivemile River. The population was 19,738 according to the 2010 census.The town is one of the most affluent communities in the United States...
, and then went to a school in Georgia, which was later to become Oglethorpe University
Oglethorpe University
Oglethorpe University is a private liberal arts college in Brookhaven, Georgia, an inner suburb of Atlanta. It was chartered in 1835 and named after James Edward Oglethorpe, the state's founder.-History:...
. In all he spent three years teaching in two academies in Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
, returning to Yale College on Dec. 1, 1838, to take the position of tutor. He was appointed assistant professor of Latin and Greek in 1842 and one year later the title was restricted to Latin and he was given a year's leave of absence for study in Europe. This year was eventually extended to two years and from 1843 to 1845 he studied in Germany and Italy. While in Berlin he instructed the Crown Prince of Prussia
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
, and his cousin, Prince Frederick Charles. Six years after his return to Yale he was made professor of Latin. He was long a trustee of Hopkins Grammar School in New Haven and was a member of the state board of education 1866-77. He was on the committee for building the Yale Art School, serving with President Noah Porter
Noah Porter
Noah Porter, Jr. was an American academic, philosopher, author, lexicographer and President of Yale College .-Biography:...
and Professor Daniel Coit Gilman
Daniel Coit Gilman
Daniel Coit Gilman was an American educator and academician, who was instrumental in founding the Sheffield Scientific School at Yale College, and who subsequently served as one of the earliest presidents of the University of California, the first president of Johns Hopkins University, and as...
[qq.v.].
Thacher was identified with Yale College more closely than any of his contemporaries. President Timothy Dwight V
Timothy Dwight V
Timothy Dwight V was an American academic, an educator, a Congregational minister, and president of Yale College...
said of him, "His influence with the Faculty and the Corporation equaled or even surpassed that of any other College officer." This extraordinary position was due not primarily to his scholarship, although he had the reputation of being a sound and thorough scholar, but to his keen interest and constant activity in the management of college affairs both faculty and undergraduate. Before the day of deans, Thacher did much of the work which a dean would perform today. He was known as one of the best disciplinarians that the college ever had and yet he retained the devotion and affection of undergraduates to an extraordinary degree. As an undergraduate he had been "exuberant in spirit," and one who was a student under him in Yale writes of "Tutor Thacher, the florid and fiery, of perpetual youth and enthusiasm."
He and Professor Theodore Dwight Woolsey
Theodore Dwight Woolsey
Theodore Dwight Woolsey was an American academic, author and president of Yale College from 1846 through 1871.-Biography:Theodore Dwight Woolsey was born October 31, 1801 in New York City...
[q.v.] were the first advocates at Yale of graduate instruction in non-technical fields and he himself was one of the first classicists to go abroad for the advancement of his scholarship. This scholarship was never very productive. He edited Cicero's De Officiis
De Officiis
De Officiis is an essay by Marcus Tullius Cicero divided into three books, in which Cicero expounds his conception of the best way to live, behave, and observe moral obligations.- Origin :...
in 1850, and largely as a result of his work with Karl Zumpt in Berlin he published in 1871 A Latin Grammar for the Use of Schools, a translation of the work of Johan Nikolai Madvig. Aside from these productions, a few slight essays and book reviews in the New Englander make up his professional output. A teacher always, rather than an investigator, he seems even to have had a slightly suspicious attitude toward those who gave too much time to research.
Even in his teaching he was possibly too much of a disciplinarian and was sometimes thought to stick too rigorously to the grammar. To his work as administrator, Thacher brought exceptional qualifications and in this line lay his great achievements. As a teacher he contributed his share to the department's prestige while, with his strong convictions and fearless courage, his energy in raising and administering funds, his interest in people, his wide acquaintance with Yale alumni, and his devout and conscientious character, he played a larger role in the building of modern Yale than that of any one of his contemporaries. -- Clarence W. Mendell
Family
On Sept. 16, 1846, he married Olivia Day, better known as Livy, the daughter of President Jeremiah DayJeremiah Day
Jeremiah Day was an American academic, a Congregational minister and President of Yale College .-Early life:Day was the son of Rev...
[q.v.] of Yale. She died on May 18, 1858, leaving five sons, and on Aug. 1, 1860, he married her cousin Elizabeth Baldwin Sherman, who with three sons and one daughter survived him. Both wives were granddaughters of Roger Sherman
Roger Sherman
Roger Sherman was an early American lawyer and politician, as well as a founding father. He served as the first mayor of New Haven, Connecticut, and served on the Committee of Five that drafted the Declaration of Independence, and was also a representative and senator in the new republic...
.
His son Thomas Thacher
Thomas Thacher
Thomas Thacher was a descendant of the Rev. Peter Thacher, the rector of St. Edmonds, Salisbury, England; and of his son, Thomas Thacher, who came to America in 1635, settled in Salem, Massachusetts, and later became the first minister of the Old South Church in Boston. His father, Thomas Anthony...
was a prominent lawyer. His sons Sherman Day Thacher
Sherman Day Thacher
Sherman Day Thacher, , was the founder and headmaster of the Thacher School at Ojai, California. A graduate of Hopkins Grammar School, he attended Yale University and won second prize in English composition his Sophomore year; oration appointment Junior year; dissertation appointment Senior year;...
and William Larned Thacher were the founder of the Thacher School in Ojai, California
Ojai, California
Ojai is a city in Ventura County, California, USA. It is situated in the Ojai Valley , surrounded by hills and mountains. The population was 7,461 at the 2010 census, down from 7,862 at the 2000 census.-History:Chumash Indians were the early inhabitants of the valley...
; and his daughter Elizabeth Sherman Thacher married William Kent (U.S. Congressman)
William Kent (U.S. Congressman)
William Kent was an American who served as a United States Congressman representing the State of California. He spearheaded the movement to create the Muir Woods National Monument by donating land to the Federal Government for the Monument.Kent was born in Chicago, Illinois...
. He was also the paternal grandfather of US Solicitor General Thomas D. Thacher
Thomas D. Thacher
Thomas Day Thacher was a lawyer and judge in New York City.Thacher was born in Tenafly, New Jersey and was the oldest of four children of Thomas Thacher, a prominent New York lawyer, and Sarah McCulloh Thacher...
and Molly Kazan
Molly Kazan
Mary "Molly" Kazan , the daughter of Alfred Beaumont Thacher and Emma Cecelia Erkenbrecher and the granddaughter of Thomas Anthony Thacher and Elizabeth Day; she was an American playwright and the first wife of the acclaimed, but controversial film director Elia Kazan.-Works:Mary Day Thacher, as...
.
Further reading
- D. W. Allen, Geneal. and Biog. Sketches of the Descendants of Thomas and Anthony Thacher (1872)
- T. T. Sherman, Sherman Geneal. (1920)
- Obit. Record, Grads. of Yale Coll., 1886; Biog. and Hist. Record of the Class of 1835 in Yale Coll. (1881)
- W. L. Kingsley, Yale Coll.: A Sketch of Its Hist. (1879)
- Timothy Dwight, Memories of Yale Life and Men (1903)
- J. L. Chamberlain, Universities and Their Sons, Yale Univ. (1900)
- Noah Porter, in New Englander and Yale Review, May 1886
- New Haven Evening Register, Apr. 7, 1886
- files in the secretary's office, Yale Univ.