John Franklin Goucher ( '; June 7, 1845 – July 19, 1922) was an American

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's b ...

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

and missionary and the namesake of

Goucher College Goucher College ( ') is a private liberal arts college in Towson, Maryland. It was chartered in 1885 by a conference in Baltimore led by namesake John F. Goucher and local leaders of the Methodist Episcopal Church.https://archive.org/details/h ...

, formerly the Women's College of Baltimore City. He was one of the college's co-founders along with fellow clergyman John B. Van Meter and served as its second president.

Early life and education

Goucher was born on June 7, 1845, in

Waynesboro, Pennsylvania Waynesboro is a borough in Franklin County, Pennsylvania, on the southern border of the state. Waynesboro is in the Cumberland Valley between Hagerstown, Maryland, and Chambersburg, Pennsylvania. It is part of Chambersburg, PA Micropolitan Stat ...

(

Franklin County, Pennsylvania Franklin County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 155,932 Its county seat is Chambersburg. Franklin County comprises the Chambersburg–Waynesboro, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area, wh ...

), as the last of four children to John Goucher and Eleanor Townsend. Periodic illness in his youth delayed his matriculation into high school, but Goucher nonetheless excelled in his studies and enrolled at

Dickinson College , mottoeng = Freedom is made safe through character and learning , established = , type = Private liberal arts college , endowment = $645.5 million (2022) , president = J ...

1864, from which he graduated in 1868.

Career

Ministry and missionary work

Following his graduation from college, Goucher sought to become a Methodist minister, telling his friends that he felt a "commission from God" to "promote Christian education" and "work for the unification of American Methodism." In 1869, he was licensed into the ministry and was assigned to the Baltimore Conference to serve as a minister for the Methodist Episcopal Church in

Baltimore County, Maryland Baltimore County ( , locally: or ) is the third-most populous county in the U.S. state of Maryland and is part of the Baltimore metropolitan area. Baltimore County (which partially surrounds, though does not include, the independent City of ...

. As his local reputation as a minister grew, Goucher eventually became more invested in missionary work, making numerous trips to China and Japan to help found and support mission hospitals and schools. He was also instrumental in the establishment of Aoyama Gakuin in Shibuya, Japan.

Morgan State University Morgan State University (Morgan State or MSU) is a public historically black research university in Baltimore, Maryland. It is the largest of Maryland's historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs). In 1867, the university, then known ...

also benefitted from land that Goucher deeded to the school during its early years.

Women's College of Baltimore City

In the late 19th century, Goucher played a seminal role in an effort to found a women's college in Baltimore, now

, a coeducational liberal arts college in

Towson, Maryland Towson () is an unincorporated community and a census-designated place in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. The population was 55,197 as of the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Baltimore County and the second-most populous unincorpo ...

. The school was chartered as the Women's College of Baltimore City in 1885 and opened three years later. Goucher and his wife made significant financial contributions towards the school's founding, which helped the fledgling institution secure a campus and begin building an endowment. After first refusing, Goucher eventually agreed to become president of the school in 1890 and served in this capacity until 1908. In 1910 the school was renamed in his honor. As president emeritus, Goucher served on the college's board of trustees and participated in sustained fundraising efforts for the school.

Personal life

In 1877, Goucher married Mary Cecilia Fisher (1850–1902), who was raised in Baltimore and was the daughter of a physician. Together they had five children. Goucher's health deteriorated after his resignation as president. However, he continued to travel around the world performing missionary work, making his last trip to China a year before his death. Goucher died of anemia at 77 on July 20, 1922, at his home in

Pikesville, Maryland Pikesville is a census-designated place (CDP) in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. Pikesville is just northwest of the Baltimore city limits. It is the northwestern suburb closest to Baltimore. The population was 30,764 at the 2010 cens ...

. He was buried at nearby

Druid Ridge Cemetery Druid Ridge Cemetery is located in Pikesville, Maryland, just outside the city of Baltimore. Among its monuments and graves are several noted sculptures by Hans Schuler and the final resting places of: *Felix Agnus, American Civil War general a ...

Selected works

* * * * *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Goucher, John 1845 births 1922 deaths American philanthropists University and college founders People from Waynesboro, Pennsylvania Methodists from Pennsylvania Methodist ministers Dickinson College alumni Presidents of Goucher College Methodists from Maryland