Chapin, Rev. Stephen

From GWUEncyc

President

Second President of Columbian College

1828-1841

Professor of Moral and Intellectual Philosophy, and Belles-Lettres

Stephen Chapin (1778-1845) was born in Milford, Massachusetts, Nov. 4, 1778, and died Oct. 1, 1845. He graduated from Harvard in 1804, and then studied theology under Rev. Nathaniel Emmons, of Franklin, Massachusetts. He entered the Congregational ministry and served as pastor at Hillsborough, N.H., from 1805 to 1808, and at Mount Vernon, N.H., from 1809 to 1818. Having changed his views on the mode and subjects of baptism, Chapin entered the Baptist ministry, and in 1819 was ordained pastor of the church at North Yarmouth, Maine. In 1822 he accepted the professorship of theology in Waterville College (now Colby University), and remained there until 1828, when he became President of the Columbian College. This position he retained until 1841, when failing health compelled him to resign. He was a man of culture and learning, and won the regard of all with whom he associated. In Washington he was intimate with the leading statesmen and scholars of his day. His published works include sermons, addresses and essays.

GW Tenure Information: Under Chapin’s administration, the first Master of Arts degrees were awarded and an Act of Congress conferred on the school a federal grant of $25,000 in city lots. At the very end of Chapin's tenure, Columbian College was free of debt.

Buildings or other makers named for individual: Chapin Hall (no longer extant)

Document Information

Images: 1
Photographic Credit: University Archives
Author or Source: Adapted from Historical catalogue of the Officers and Graduates of the Columbian University, Washington, D.C., 1821-1891; Bricks Without Straw
Document Location: University Archives
Date Added to Encyclopedia: December 21, 2006
Prepared by: Lyle Slovick, Assistant University Archivist

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