Henry Augustus Buchtel (September 30, 1847 – October 22, 1924) was an American

minister Minister may refer to: * Minister (Christianity), a Christian cleric ** Minister (Catholic Church) * Minister (government), a member of government who heads a ministry (government department) ** Minister without portfolio, a member of government w ...

educator A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. whe ...

, and

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. He was the seventeenth governor of

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

Life and career

Henry Augustus Buchtel was born near

Akron, Ohio Akron () is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Summit County, Ohio, Summit County. It is located on the western edge of the Glaciated Allegheny Plateau, about south of downtown Cleveland. As of the 2020 C ...

on September 30, 1847, the son of Jonathan B. Buchtel, a physician, and Eliza Newcomer Buchtel.''National Cyclopaedia of American Biography'', p. 502 Within a couple of years of his birth, his parents relocated their family to

Elkhart, Indiana Elkhart ( ) is a city in Elkhart County, Indiana, United States. The city is located east of South Bend, Indiana, east of Chicago, Illinois, and north of Indianapolis, Indiana. Elkhart has the larger population of the two principal cities of th ...

. Henry was a younger cousin of John Richards Buchtel, the founder in 1870 of Buchtel College (later the

University of Akron The University of Akron is a public research university in Akron, Ohio. It is part of the University System of Ohio. As a STEM-focused institution, it focuses on industries such as polymers, advanced materials, and engineering. It is classified ...

). In 1871, Henry's older brother, William, married Helen Barnum, a daughter of

P. T. Barnum Phineas Taylor Barnum (; July 5, 1810 – April 7, 1891) was an American showman, businessman, and politician, remembered for promoting celebrated hoaxes and founding the Barnum & Bailey Circus (1871–2017) with James Anthony Bailey. He was ...

. He graduated from Indiana Asbury (now DePauw) University in 1872 and was ordained to the

Methodist Episcopal The Methodist Episcopal Church (MEC) was the oldest and largest Methodist denomination in the United States from its founding in 1784 until 1939. It was also the first religious denomination in the US to organize itself on a national basis. In ...

ministry. He married Mary Stevenson on February 4, 1873. The couple moved to

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...

where they served as

missionaries A missionary is a member of a religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Mi ...

from April until August 1873 when his wife's deteriorating health forced their return to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. Over the next twenty-six years, he served as pastor of congregations in

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

Evans Chapel The Evans Memorial Chapel (often simply Evans Chapel) is an historic chapel on the campus of the University of Denver in Colorado. It is the oldest continuously-used building for religious purposes in Denver. Completed in 1878, the Evans Memori ...

and Trinity Church,

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, and

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. During his years as a minister, Henry and Mary had four children: Frost Craft (1875), Emma (1882), Henry Jr. (1896), and Mary (1898). Henry Jr. died in Denver from

scarlet fever Scarlet fever, also known as Scarlatina, is an infectious disease caused by ''Streptococcus pyogenes'' a Group A streptococcus (GAS). The infection is a type of Group A streptococcal infection (Group A strep). It most commonly affects childr ...

in 1901. In 1899, Buchtel was chosen as chancellor of the

University of Denver The University of Denver (DU) is a private university, private research university in Denver, Colorado. Founded in 1864, it is the oldest independent private university in the Mountain States, Rocky Mountain Region of the United States. It is ...

, officially assuming his duties in January 1900. At that time, the university had debts of around $175,000 and faced the possibility of foreclosure on its mortgages. The new chancellor began fundraising immediately, and managed to retire the debts by August 1903 although the university's finances remained precarious for many years afterward. Buchtel worked with William G. Evans, both a son of its founder, John Evans, and a trustee of the university, to place the institution's funding on a firmer foundation by organizing a series of fundraising campaigns and establishing an endowment for the school. Reviewing these efforts on behalf of the university, the ''

Denver Post ''The Denver Post'' is a daily newspaper and website published in Denver, Colorado. As of June 2022, it has an average print circulation of 57,265. In 2016, its website received roughly six million monthly unique visitors generating more than 13 ...

'' noted in 1924 that:

In twenty years under Dr. Buchtel's guidance, $1,750,000 was raised on his personal appeal for its development and it stands today backed by 20,000 subscribers . . .

In September 1906, after the Republican Party's nominee for governor, Phillip B. Stewart, withdrew from the race, a group of party officials, Franklin Brooks, George Stidger, and John F. Vivian, decided to offer the nomination to Chancellor Buchtel. Before accepting the trio's proposal to fill the vacancy on the ballot, Buchtel requested their promises that he would have absolute independence if elected. With their assurances, Buchtel became the Republican nominee. He was elected governor of

in November and served one term from 1907 until 1909, while continuing to handle his duties as chancellor. A

stroke A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...

in September 1920 forced Dr. Buchtel to resign his position as chancellor the following December. Four years later, he suffered another stroke and, within a few days, died at his home in Denver on Wednesday, October 22, 1924. He was buried at Fairmount Cemetery in

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

In 1988, the Buchtel Bungalow, located at 2100 S. Columbine St. just two blocks east of the University of Denver campus, was listed with the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

. Finished in the first half of 1906, the house served as Governor Buchtel's residence from 1907 until 1909 and for the remaining years of his life. Today, Buchtel Bungalow is owned by the

and serves as the home of current Chancellor

Rebecca Chopp Rebecca S. Chopp (born 1952) is an academic administrator and professor. She was the 18th chancellor of the University of Denver, and the first female chancellor in the institution's history. Prior to that, Chopp was a president of Swarthmore Coll ...

. In addition, Buchtel Boulevard in Denver was built and named to honor Dr. Buchtel.Goodstein, ''Denver Streets,'' pp. 29-30.

Notes

References

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External links

Governor Henry Augustus Buchtel Collection at the Colorado State Archives
*
Guide to the Henry Buchtel Papers at the University of Denver
Retrieved September 30, 2014. {{DEFAULTSORT:Buchtel, Henry Augustus Republican Party governors of Colorado American Methodist missionaries Protestant missionaries in Bulgaria American Methodist clergy DePauw University alumni 1847 births 1924 deaths Politicians from Akron, Ohio Chancellors of the University of Denver Methodist missionaries in Europe