On January 23, the first public announcement of Wheaton Female Seminary appeared in the Boston Recorder. On April 22, the doors opened to fifty pupils, and a 22-week summer term commenced.
1840 - 1903Martha E. W. Vose
New Principal Martha Vose advised her pupils that “one thing well learned, is better than a dozen, half committed and not half comprehended.”
1842 - 1912Martha C. Sawyer
A member of Wheaton Female Seminary’s first graduating class in 1839, Martha Sawyer remained at Wheaton to become a full time teacher. After three years of service, Miss Sawyer replaced Martha Vose as principal in 1842.
1850 - 1876Caroline Cutler Metcalf
Mrs. Caroline Cutler Metcalf was one of the few truly historically influential members of the Wheaton community. Hired in 1850, at age 41, to replace Margaret Mann, she remained at Wheaton for 26 years, providing superior leadership until 1876.
1853 - 1859Reverend Franklin Holmes
Reverend Franklin Holmes was a Wheaton trustee from 1853 to 1859 while he was the minister of the Trinitarian Congregational Church. He was married to Martha Sawyer, a member of Wheaton’s first graduating class who later became principal of the… Read More »
1865 - 1908Edwin Barrows
Edwin Barrows was a trustee from 1865 to 1908 and the treasurer from 1891 to 1908. Edwin’s father, Albert Barrows, had been a trustee from 1845 to 1853. Edwin was born in 1834, and prepared for college at Pierce Academy… Read More »
1868 - 1941Frances Vose Emerson
Frances Vose Emerson 1872 taught literature, rhetoric and history from 1881 to 1886 and was a trustee from 1922 to 1941, when she was voted trustee emerita. She was born in Hudson, OH, in 1855, to Martha Eliza Waldo Vose,… Read More »
1870 - 1931Annie March Kilham
Annie March Kilham 1870 took a class in teaching at Wheaton in 1869-70 and remained at the Seminary to teach Latin, English, German, Mathematics, Natural Philosophy and Astronomy from 1870 to 1875 and in 1885-86. A founding member of the… Read More »
1871Reverend Albert H. Plumb Speaks at Commencement
The Reverend Albert Hale Plumb, D.D., of Chelsea, Massachusetts, gave the Commencement speech. An alumna would later write, “We shall never forget Dr. Plumb’s impressive messages to us on Commencement days. He taught us how to live, and I say… Read More »
1872 - 1893Reverend Alfred Emerson
The Rev. Alfred Emerson (1812-1896) served as Wheaton Seminary Trustee from 1872 to 1893 and Treasurer from 1880 to 1891. He and his wife were among Eliza Baylies Wheaton’s closest friends and advisors. Emerson provided fundamental leadership for the Seminary… Read More »
1889Samuel Austin Chapin
Samuel Austin Chapin was the brother of Mrs. Wheaton, and a Trustee from 1889-1890.
1935 - 1963William F. Chase
William F. Chase was the treasurer of the College, a trustee from 1935 to 1963 and vice president of the Boston Five Cents Savings Bank. When Chase retired from the board, the trustees noted that “he was a man who… Read More »
1957 - 1985Gilbert Hood, Jr.
Gilbert Hood was trustee from 1957 to 1982, vice-chairman of the board from 1964 to 1971, treasurer from 1971 to 1975, and trustee emeritus from 1982 until his death in 1985. Mr. Hood received an honorary degree in 1982. His… Read More »
1958Sylvia Meadows, Honorary Degree Recipient
Sylvia Meadows 1918 is awarded an honorary degree. Meadows was a member of the board of trustees from 1927 to 1969 and secretary of the board from 1927 to 1964. She was the College’s first alumnae secretary, serving from 1921… Read More »
1960Muriel Reynolds, Honorary Degree Recipient
Muriel Reylonds, Class of 1924, is named one of the first two women officers of a major worldwide corporation.
1964Richard P. Chapman, Honorary Degree Recipient
Richard P. Chapman was a member of the Board of Trustees from 1939 to 1970, and its chairman from 1947 to 1964. Mr. Chapman was the Director of New England Merchants Bank and a trustee of many other institutions.
1972Brackett H. Clark, Honorary Degree Recipient
Mr. Clark was a trustee from 1960 to 1975 (emeritus). His two daughters Virginia, class of 1953, and Helen, class of 1960, are Wheaton graduates.
1977 - 1989Evelyn Danzig Haas
Evelyn Danzig Haas 1939, trustee of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, was a Wheaton trustee from 1977 to 1989. She also co-authored Wade a Little Deeper, Dear, a fly-fishing guide for women. Despite her broad range of activities… Read More »
1985 - 1999Harry V. Keefe
Trustee starting in 1985, Mr. Keefe was a graduate of Amherst College and Boston University Graduate School of Business Administration. Keefe Field and Keefe Hall were named for Harry V. Keefe.
1986Lloyd G. and Mildred Balfour
Mr. and Mrs. Lloyd G. and Mildred Balfour were the founders of the Balfour Co., maker of class rings and long-time friends of the College.