John Henry MacCracken (September 30, 1875 – February 1, 1948) was an American academic administrator who served as president of Westminster College and Lafayette College. When he was chosen as president of Westminster College in 1899, MacCracken was the youngest college president in the United States. MacCracken was the son of

Henry MacCracken Henry Mitchell MacCracken (September 28, 1840 – December 24, 1918) was an American educator and academic administrator. Biography Henry MacCracken was born in Oxford, Ohio on September 28, 1840. He graduated from Miami University in Ohio ...

, a chancellor of

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, the ...

, and the brother of

Henry Noble MacCracken Henry Noble MacCracken (November 19, 1880 – May 7, 1970) was an American academic administrator who was the fifth president of Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York, serving from 1915 to 1946 as the first secular president of the college. Ma ...

, a president of

Vassar College Vassar College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. Founded in 1861 by Matthew Vassar, it was the second degree-granting institution of higher education for women in the United States, closely follo ...

Early life

MacCracken was born in

Rochester, Vermont Rochester is a town in Windsor County, Vermont, United States. The population was 1,099 at the 2020 census. The central village is delineated as the Rochester census-designated place. Set on the edge of the Green Mountain National Forest, th ...

, to

, a chancellor of

(NYU), and the former Catherine Almira Hubbard. He was a descendant of Irish immigrants to Pennsylvania in the mid-18th century. His brother

became president of

. John Henry MacCracken attended college preparatory school in New York City. When he was 15, MacCracken enrolled at NYU and he completed an undergraduate degree in 1894, when he was named class valedictorian. He pursued graduate study at NYU and the Union Theological Seminary before earning a Ph.D. at the Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg in Germany.

Career

He joined the NYU faculty in 1896 and was promoted to assistant professor shortly before accepting the role of president at Westminster College in 1899. At the time of his election to the presidency at Westminster College, an NYU source said that the appointment would make him the youngest college president in the United States. When MacCracken came to Westminster, his age raised alarm among some of the supporters of the university, and his modest personality and quiet nature did not immediately assuage his doubters. Within a few months, MacCracken secured $20,000 in donations for the university, and he was able to increase the variety of academic offerings at the school. When the university's chair of Bible and metaphysics resigned, President MacCracken was named the Sauser Chair of Philosophy and Christian Apologetics. A formal presidential inauguration was held for MacCracken in June 1900. MacCracken left Westminster College in 1903 to return to NYU as a

syndic Syndic (Late Latin: '; Greek: ' – one who helps in a court of justice, an advocate, representative) is a term applied in certain countries to an officer of government with varying powers, and secondly to a representative or delegate of a universi ...

and professor of politics. He taught one of the earliest courses in city planning in the United States, and he served as vice president of the university senate. In 1914, MacCracken was vice president of the trustees of the American Institute of Christian Philosophy. His father was president. In 1915, MacCracken was selected as president of Lafayette College. The school's physical plant increased in value under MacCracken, who served until 1927. During his time as president of Lafayette College, MacCracken was one of the founding advisors during the creation of

Alpha Phi Omega Alpha Phi Omega (), commonly known as APO, but also A-Phi-O and A-Phi-Q, is a coeducational service fraternity. It is the largest collegiate fraternity in the United States, with chapters at over 350 campuses, an active membership of over 25,0 ...

, the largest collegiate fraternity in the United States.

Personal

MacCracken married Edith Constable in 1910. MacCracken's father-in-law, Frederick Augustus Constable, managed

Arnold Constable & Company Arnold Constable & Company was a department store chain in the New York City metropolitan area. At one point it was the oldest department store in America, operating for over 150 years from its founding in 1825 to its closing in 1975. At the comp ...

in New York, and he was the son of one of the store's original partners. MacCracken's daughter Louise married Robert Olmsted, a trustee of

and the namesake of the school's biological sciences building. His son Constable was a graduate of

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 higher le ...

and Columbia Law School. Active in the Presbyterian faith, MacCracken spent nearly ten years as president of the Presbyterian college board. He represented the church as a delegate at world conferences in Lausanne, Oxford and Edinburgh.

Death

MacCracken died at his Manhattan home on February 1, 1948. He was survived by his wife, daughter, son and brother.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:MacCracken, John Henry 1875 births 1948 deaths People from Rochester, Vermont New York University alumni Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg alumni New York University faculty Presidents of Lafayette College Alpha Phi Omega founders Lafayette College trustees Union Theological Seminary (New York City) alumni