Centre College Special Collections - Board of Trustees Minutes (1840)

Centre College Board of Trustees Minutes (Vol. 2 - 1840)

February 5, 1840

Present Hopkins, Bell, Barbour, McDowell, Tod, and Dr. Craig, who presented his certificate of appointment & qualification as a Trustee.

Messrs. Hopkins, McDowell, Tod, & Bell were appointed a committee to examine & report upon the claim of George Caldwell.

Messrs. Bell, Barbour, & Craig were appointed a committee to examine the Treasurer's accounts & report to the Board.

Mr. Bell was empowered to purchase from Matthew O'Brien the strip of ground lying between the College lot & the turnpike road.

March 24, 1840

Present Messrs. Tod, McDowell, Alexander, Hopkins, Craig, Price.

Messrs. John S. Berryman & Nathan Rice having appeared & produced testimo-

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nials of having been elected & duly qualified as Trustees, took their seats.

Messrs. Jacobs & Young presented a report on the account of Mr. Harlan - the report was received & approved, & Mr. Bell was added to the committee, who were directed to settle finally with Mr. Harlan & not to allow him more than $75.00 per annum for his services as Secretary to the Board. The committee were further directed to pay over to the Asylum whatever might be due to the College from Mr. Harlan.

The Board do hereby sell to John A. Jacobs the land belonging to the Asylum in Florida, that may yet remain unsold by the agent, for the sum of $2.00 per acre, half the money to be paid at the end of one year from this time, & the other half at the end of two years from this time. Messrs. Bell & Cunningham were appointed a committee to draw up the papers in reference to this sale.

Messrs. Bell, Craig, & Barbour were appointed a committee to advise with Mr. Jacobs in his correspondence with Mr. Allen, agent of the Asylum.

A copy of the will of Mr. Dannah Pyke, of Bourbon County, was laid before the Board by the Secretary & he was directed to ascertain whether there could be any arrangement made with the executor for securing any proceeds from the legacy of $10,000, before

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the period should expire during which the executor was to have the use of the legacy without interest & without security.

Mr. Jacobs was allowed $25.00 per annum as Secretary to the Asylum.

Mr. Kerr's salary was raised to $900 per annum.

Ordered that the Building Committee, Messrs. McDowell & Hopkins to whom Dr. Craig was added, proceed forthwith to have wings constructed to the College edifice.

Resolved that as the number of recitations in the College & Preparatory Department is not sufficient to employ the faculty & teacher of the Preparatory the number of hours assigned to each by the resolution of the Board at its last meeting, the Board direct the Faculty not to increase the number of recitations, but to divide the existing recitations between themselves, in conjunction with the teacher of the Preparatory, in such a way as they shall agree on among themselves.

John C. Young, Secretary

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September 23, 1840

The Board met in the College Library. Present Price, McDowell, Breckinridge, Hopkins, Barbour, Nathan L. Rice, Craig, Alexander.

Messrs. George T. Wood, Rev. Jacob F. Price, & James K. Burch appeared, & having exhibited their certificates of having duly qualified as Trustees appointed by Synod, took their seats. The meeting was opened with prayer, & the minutes of the last meeting were read.

The Secretary reported a donation from Mr. James Hill, of Bath County, Kentucky, of three notes, amounting in all to $1,000.00. The Board directed the Financial Committee to take immediate measures for collecting the two smaller notes, & for collecting or additionally securing the larger one.

The Secretary reported that he had seen the executor of Mr. Pyke, & ascertained from him that he would in a few weeks be ready to make a proposition to the Board in relation to the payment of the legacy in his hands.

The Building Committee reported that during the present session of the Board they would hand in a full report of their contract for the erection of the wings.

Resolved that the Treasurer be required to report, at every semi-

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annual meeting, on the state of the funds.

Whereas the Board have learned that some of the students of the College during the present session had formed a Political Club without the approbation or knowledge of the Faculty, resolved that the Board express their strong disapprobation of all such proceedings; at the same time that they express their gratification with the conduct of the students in cheerfully & immediately dissolving their political organization as soon as they learned that it met with the disapprobation of the Faculty.

Resolved that the societies or students be not permitted to invite any persons to deliver an address to them without obtaining the approbation of the Faculty.

The Board took a recess.

Afternoon Session

Joshua F. Bell appeared & took his seat.

The Building Committee reported that they had contracted with Messrs. Crutchfield & Russel for completing the improvement of the College buildings, according to a plan exhibited & an agreement read by the Committee. The sum to be paid to the contractors was $5,466. The report was approved.*

The accounts of the Treasurer were referred to a committee of three, Messrs. Burch, Alexander, & Hopkins, for examination.

*see 2 pages in advance [i.e. page 116]

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September 24, 1840

The Board met according to adjournment. Present Craig, Hopkins, Price, Breckinridge, Wood, Burch, Jacob F. Price, McDowell.

Rev. James Hawthorn, having presented his testimonial of having duly qualified as a Trustee elected by Synod, took his seat.

The degree of A. B. was conferred, on the recommendation of the Faculty, upon the following young gentlemen, members of the present Senior class, viz William Alexander, Daniel Breck, William T. Martin, Thomas H. Cleland, Jr., Lyman B. Crittenden, Presly W. Ewing, John D. Meek, John R. Parkhill, Thomas Turner, James Weir, Joseph W. Wallace, Robert C. Wickliffe, James D. Elder, Thomas D. Tilford, Richard J. Brown, Michael Meyer

The resignation of Professor Green was laid before the Board, upon which the following resolutions were adopted. Resolved that the resignation of Lewis W. Green be accepted, & that the Treasurer be directed to pay his salary to the 1st of November next, which will close his collegiate year.

Resolved that the Board express their regret that Mr. Green's views of duty have compelled him to relinquish his professorship with the ability & faithfulness he has exhibited in the discharge of his duties as a Professor.

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Resolved that the Building Committee be directed to have the buildings put into thorough repair, & that the Faculty be directed to have them kept in good order & to enforce upon the students by every means the observance of propriety & decorum - and that the Faculty be empowered to hire a man to devote his whole time to keeping the building & ground in good order, & attending to such other services as may be required about the College. The Faculty are directed to assess any damages that may be done to the building; & if the individual offender can be discovered he must be required to pay fourfold the amount necessary to repair them; if he cannot be discovered, an assessment is to be laid on all the students to cover the repairs.

Resolved that the Faculty prepare & lay before the Board at its next semi-annual meeting a set of laws for the government of the College.

The tuition in the Grammar School was raised to $30 per annum.

On motion of Daniel B. Price, the degree of Doctor of Divinity was conferred upon the Rev. Lewis W. Green.

John C. Young, Secretary

The following part of the minutes was omitted owing to their being taken by a different hand in consequence of the absence of the Secretary; they are part of the proceedings on the 23rd of September: [i.e. page 114]

The President of the College made a detailed

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report in writing as to the condition of the College. The report was referred to a committee (after being received) consisting of Messrs. Daniel B. Price, Jacob F. Price, Grundy, Breckinridge, & Wood. The report of the committee was received & approved. The report is as follows:

1. Resolved that there be a speedy collection & judicious investment of all notes & subscriptions, not exceeding five hundred dollars.

2. Resolved that the Synod be urgently requested to take into consideration the importance & necessity of adopting speedily some efficient measures to enlarge the endowment of the College - and that the Board cause to be laid before the Synod, through their Treasurer or otherwise, such a detailed statement of the pecuniary condition of the College as shall enable them to judge correctly of its real wants.

The contract heretofore made by this Board with John A. Jacobs, touching the sale of the Florida land owned by the Board for the benefit of the Asylum, is hereby cancelled & held for naught - Mr. Jacobs having expressed an anxiety to have it cancelled.

John C. Young, Secretary

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December 8, 1840

Board met. Present Barbour, Daniel B. Price, Hopkins, Tod, Bell, Craig, McDowell.

The Board appointed Rev. J. Montgomery as agent to visit the church within the bounds of the Transylvania Presbytery, for the purpose of raising funds for the endowment of the College, agreeably to the resolutions of Synod.

The salary of Mr. Montgomery, during the time he was to be engaged in the service of the Board, was to be at the rate of $1200 per annum, he bearing his own expenses.

The salary of Prof. Beatty was raised to $900 per annum.

John C. Young, Secretary