Gideon Lane Soule (; July 25, 1796 – May 28, 1879) was an American educator, and the third principal of Phillips Exeter Academy. Soule was born in

Freeport, Maine Freeport is a town in Cumberland County, Maine, United States. The population was 8,737 at the 2020 census. Once home to a prominent shipbuilding industry, timber operations, and farming, it is now known for its numerous outlet stores; Freeport ...

, in 1796 to Moses and Martha Soule. He was descended from George Soule, a

Mayflower ''Mayflower'' was an English ship that transported a group of English families, known today as the Pilgrims, from England to the New World in 1620. After a grueling 10 weeks at sea, ''Mayflower'', with 102 passengers and a crew of about 30, r ...

passenger, and

John Wheelwright John Wheelwright (c. 1592–1679) was a Puritan clergyman in England and America, noted for being banished from the Massachusetts Bay Colony during the Antinomian Controversy, and for subsequently establishing the town of Exeter, New Hamp ...

, the founder of the town of

Exeter, New Hampshire Exeter is a town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 16,049 at the 2020 census, up from 14,306 at the 2010 census. Exeter was the county seat until 1997, when county offices were moved to neighboring Brentwood. ...

. At a young age, he left school to work as an errand boy for Jacob Abbot, who helped him attain admission to Phillips Exeter in 1813. After three years, he entered Bowdoin College, graduating in 1818. He taught at Exeter for a year as an assistant teacher, then left. He returned in 1822, as a permanent instructor in classical language. In 1838, he replaced Benjamin Abbot as principal of Exeter. He resigned as principal in 1873 citing old age as his reason. In 1856, he was awarded an LL.D degree by

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...

. He was married to Elizabeth P. Emery, with whom he had five children. His two daughters died in infancy, while his three sons, Charles Emery, Nicholas Emery, and Augustus Lord, lived into adulthood. Augustus Soule went on to become a New York Supreme Court Judge. Gideon Soule died in Exeter on May 28, 1879. Soule Hall, one of the oldest dormitories on campus, is named for Gideon Lane Soule, as was the Gideon Lane Soule Literary Society, which merged with the Golden Branch Literary Society to form what is now the

Daniel Webster Debate Society The Daniel Webster Debate Society at Phillips Exeter Academy is the oldest secondary school student debate union and literary club in the United States. Established in 1818 as ''The Golden Branch Literary Society'', a secret society, the club late ...

at Exeter.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Soule, Gideon 19th-century American educators Phillips Exeter Academy faculty Phillips Exeter Academy alumni Bowdoin College alumni Harvard Law School alumni 1796 births 1879 deaths