The Life of Union College President Eliphalet Nott

Image of Eliphalet Nott in his later life. From Grems-Doolittle Library Photograph Collection. 

This blog entry is written by Library Volunteer Victoria Bohm. 

Eliphalet Nott was born 241 years ago today, on June 25, 1773. He died on the 29th of January, 1866. Between those dates, he was a teacher, a preacher, an inventor, a businessman, and the president of Union College for sixty-two years.

Eliphalet Nott was one of nine children. His family, by the time of his birth, was poor. Much younger than the other son, Samuel, Eliphalet during his earliest years was home-schooled by his mother while living on the family farm in Ashford, Connecticut. Both Samuel and Eliphalet, coming from a clerical family brought down by difficult circumstances -- including a devastating home fire and a robbery of most of the family’s money -- did well for themselves. They both worked hard to get an education, took teaching positions, and eventually became preachers.

Nott earned his M.A. degree in 1794 from Rhode Island College (now known as Brown University), and served as the principal instructor of Plainfield Academy in Plainfield, Connecticut. Under his brother Samuel’s coaching and the guidance of the Reverend Joel Benedict, a pastor in Plainfield, Eliphalet earned his license to preach in the Congregational Church of Connecticut on June 26, 1796. The friendship with Reverend Benedict brought another bonus; on July 4, 1796, Eliphalet Nott married Benedict’s daughter Sarah.

Shortly after his marriage, Nott left New England for central New York, becoming pastor of the Presbyterian church at Cherry Valley and serving as principal of Cherry Valley Academy. His new wife joined him, and it was there that the first of the couple’s four children was born. It was also during this part of his life that Nott met John Blair Smith, then President of Union College. Smith recommended Nott to the elders of the First Presbyterian Church of Albany. The Notts moved to Albany in 1799, and Nott was formally ordained into the Presbyterian Ministry. By1800, he had become a Trustee at Union College, and by 1801 he was named co-chaplain to the State Legislature.

1804 would be a watershed year for Eliphalet Nott, though not a completely happy one. His wife Sarah died less than a year after the birth of their fourth child, shortly before Nott was elected President of Union College. He decided to accept the Trustees’ invitation to become Union College’s fourth President and was officially elected on August 24, 1804.  Also that year, Nott made himself nationally known by delivering a fiery sermon on the subject of the death of Alexander Hamilton in a duel with Aaron Burr. Not only did Nott accuse Burr of being a murderer, he branded Hamilton as equally guilty, along with any others who allowed the barbarous and bloody custom of dueling to exist.

One of the first things President Nott did for Union College was to relieve its grave financial situation by convincing the State Legislature to allow four lotteries for up to $80,000, starting in 1805. Also, during the first years of his presidency, Nott was able to institute a policy dear to his heart since his teaching career began: the abolition of the customary tradition of harsh corporal punishment and intimidation. Nott’s “moral motives” policy stressed targeted discipline, directed and administered for the most part by him, dealing directly with the “culprit,” done quickly and quietly. Not without a fair amount of opposition, Nott also allowed students who had been expelled from other school to enroll in Union College.

Image of Joseph Ramée's 1813 plans for the Union College Campus. Image from Union College website: http://www.union.edu/ramee-anniversary/campus-history/. 

Eliphalet Nott soon married a second time, in 1807. His second wife was Gertrude Peebles, with whom he had a son, Howard Nott. Nott followed through with another of his college-related projects. He purchased 250 acres of land on the edge of Schenectady for Union College and hired French architect Joseph Ramée to design a new campus. As with most construction projects, costs rose well above estimations, so a lottery was held. Unfortunately, the War of 1812 ruined the lottery and Nott ended up borrowing from financier William James. He would borrow again in 1826.

Nott’s third wife, married soon after Gertrude’s death around 1840, was Urania Sheldon (1806-1886), a Troy native and graduate of the Emma Willard School. She was a well-educated woman well able to fill the role of the Union College President’s wife. Urania Nott became in all but officially-granted title Nott’s secretary and public relations agent.

Urania Sheldon Nott. Image from Nott family surname file. 

If Nott might be described as “creative” in his financial dealings, all of the dealings, disagreements, investigations, suits, and various uproars in the ranks of the Trustees never toppled his presidency. Still, in January of 1854, Nott and his third wife Urania were compelled by stern legal advice to set up the Nott Trust Fund giving over half a million dollars directly and unequivocally to Union College. This action estranged two of his sons, who were angry that their father’s fiscal behavior deprived them of an inheritance.

Image of the Nott Stove. This drawing appeared in the Century Illustrated magazine in 1871. Image obtained via Wikimedia Commons. 

Being president of Union College, surviving all manner of financial controversies, publishing scholastic and moral texts, and teaching various classes in the curricula he was attempting to restructure with plans to make Union College into Union University with a graduate program, did not prevent Eliplalet Nott from being an inventor as well. Nott’s efforts to invent a safer coal/wood burning stove earned him about thirty patents. “Nott Stoves” were famous enough to be mentioned by name in books by such authors as James Fenimore Cooper. In 1827, using sons Benjamin and Howard as managers, Nott set up H. Nott and Company in Albany, often referred to as “the Union Furnace.” By 1831, the company had moved to New York City, though the family lost control in the financial panic of 1836. Undaunted, Nott licensed out his patents to other companies and by the mid 1840’s did business with nationally and abroad, thus continuing to earn money from his patents.

Students pose in front of the structure now known as the Nott Memorial building, around 1880. Construction of the 16-sided building began in 1858; it was completed in 1879. The building was officially named for Eliphalet Nott in 1904. Image from Grems-Doolittle Library Photograph Collection. 

In 1859, Nott had the first in a series of strokes, rendering him medically incompetent to be Union College President. However, because the Board was so divided over the issue of having Vice President L.P. Hickok succeed him, he remained in office for another six years until his death at the age of 92. The Nott Memorial on the Union College Campus, the unique campus building most immediately identified with the college, was named in his honor. The names of Nott Street and Nott Terrace close to the campus also serve as a testament to a man who touched the community in Schenectady for over 60 years.

Schenectady Boat Club

Postcard of Schenectady Boat Club clubhouse on the Scotia side of the Mohawk River, opposite present-day Riverside Park, ca. 1910. Image from Grems-Doolittle Library Postcard Collection.

"The vigor of manhood which has guided the club's activities during eight years of unfailing success is unabating and as succeeding years find new faces in its executive councils and wearing its insignia in athletic events, the same daring and unconquered spirit of their predecessors is dominant."
         -- The Periscope v. 1, n. 1 (December 1915)

As spring turns to summer, more and more boats can be seen traveling along the Mohawk River near our library in Schenectady's Stockade neighborhood. In a salute to the spirit of the season, we are featuring some images related to the Schenectady Boat Club.

These images from The Periscope showcase events at the Schenectady Boat Club's annual regatta. Image from the collections of the Grems-Doolittle Library. 

The Schenectady Boat Club was first established after a general interest meeting in 1907. The group originally met in the old city pumping station in present-day Riverside Park, on the Schenectady side of the river. They soon raised $15,000 to purchase and and build a clubhouse. By 1909, the Boat Club had erected its clubhouse on the Scotia side of the Mohawk, located just a few hundred feet east of the bridge that ran from the foot of Washington Avenue in Schenectady to Scotia. The spacious two-story clubhouse included offices, a meeting room, lounge and pool room, showers, restrooms, and lockers on the first floor, while the second floor was a large ballroom used for dinners and dances. Fireplaces, a victrola and piano, and places to play cards provided a convivial atmosphere. The club's grounds also included a dock and a boat storage shed. Within a few years tennis courts and a rifle range were added to the grounds.

Officers of the Schenectady Boat Club in 1920. Front row, left to right: Noel E. Bensinger (Treasurer), Winfield D. Bearse (Vice President), Walden D. Brough (President), Floyd T. Smith (Secretary), Donald K. Frost (Captain). Back row, left to right: John W. Randall, Guy M. Jones, J. Wiggins Collamer, Stuart J. Knight, Charles A. Simon, Eugene Johnson. Image from Larry Hart Collection.

The cover of the constitution and by-laws of the Schenectady Boat Club. The cover features an image of the club's official flag. Image from the collections of the Grems-Doolittle Library. 

Although the primary purpose of the Schenectady Boat Club was devoted to boat recreation -- including motorboating, canoeing and canoe sailing, river cruising, inter-club competitions and their annual regattas -- the club offered plenty of other social, athletic, and recreational opportunities, including suppers, lectures, smokers, dances, ski trips, automobile cruises, and card tournaments. Members of the club organized their own tennis and bowling leagues, went swimming and ice-skating, and opted to create a golf course on their property in 1922. With the addition of the golf course, membership increased from 300 to 500, and the focus switched from boating to a general country club. In accordance, the Schenectady Boat Club changed its name to Schenectady Country Club in January 1925.

This fanciful vision of the Schenectady Boat Club's future on the Mohawk River is depicted in a cartoon that appeared in The Periscope, the newsletter of the Boat Club, in 1916. The Grems-Doolittle library holds a run of The Periscope from the inaugural issue in December 1915 through the February 1926 issue. Image from the collections of the Grems-Doolittle Library. 

In 1978, only the foundation of the old Schenectady Boat Club clubhouse was still in existence. The building was razed after a fire in 1941. Harold N. Hyde, a former member of the Schenectady Boat Club, lays his hands on the remains of the foundation. Image from Larry Hart Collection. 

From Erie Canal to Erie Boulevard

A serene view of the canal era in Schenectady. This drawing appeared in Harper's New Monthly Magazine in December 1873, as part of a piece on "The Waterways of New York." 

The area now occupied by Erie Boulevard in Schenectady is just one of the places in the city that, in looking back, the changes wrought by time are very apparent. We've selected a few trios of photographs that showcase the transformation of the Erie Canal from a nineteenth century waterway, to a drained canal under construction into a road, to the busy Erie Boulevard of the mid-20th century. Enjoy these images that show the changes to transportation, commerce, and community life in Schenectady.

Erie Canal looking north from State Street toward the Liberty Street bridge, ca. 1900. Image from Grems-Doolittle Library Photograph Collection. 

In this photo, you can see the drained canal -- from State Street to the Liberty Street bridge -- partially filled in in preparation for the construction of Erie Boulevard. Image from Grems-Doolittle Library Photograph Collection. 

The bustling corner of Erie Boulevard and State Street, ca. 1950, looking north toward Liberty Street. Image from Grems-Doolittle Library Photograph Collection.  

This image, ca. 1896, shows the Erie Canal looking south from State Street. The road that ran alongside the canal was referred to as Dock Street. Image from Grems-Doolittle Library Photograph Collection. 

The drained Erie Canal as it began to be filled in, looking south from State Street, 1917. Image from Grems-Doolittle Library Photograph Collection. 

Erie Boulevard in 1937, looking south from State Street. The General Electric plant is clearly visible in the distance, and the cars of shoppers are parked in front of local businesses. Image from Grems-Doolittle Library Photograph Collection. 

This undated photograph shows the Erie Canal below State Street, looking north toward the State Street bridge.  Image from Grems-Doolittle Library Photograph Collection. 

The drained Erie Canal, just south of the State Street bridge, as it was being filled in. Image from Grems-Doolittle Library Photograph Collection. 

This 1950s image shows Erie Boulevard south of State Street, looking north toward State Street. Image from the Grems-Doolittle Library Photograph Collection.