Charles Sprague Smith (1853-1910) was a

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

professor, best known for being the founder and director of the People's Institute.

Early life and education

Sprague Smith was born on August 27, 1853 in

Andover, Massachusetts Andover is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. It was settled in 1642 and incorporated in 1646."Andover" in ''The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th ed., 1992, Vol. 1, p. 387. As of th ...

to Caroline L. and Charles Sprague Smith. He studied at

Amherst College Amherst College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Amherst, Massachusetts. Founded in 1821 as an attempt to relocate Williams College by its then-president Zephaniah Swift Moore, Amherst is the third oldest institution of higher educatio ...

, graduating in 1874, and for six additional years in Europe.

Career

Educator

He taught at Columbia University beginning in 1880 as a professor of

Germanic languages The Germanic languages are a branch of the Indo-European language family spoken natively by a population of about 515 million people mainly in Europe, North America, Oceania and Southern Africa. The most widely spoken Germanic language, Engli ...

. He then taught comparative literature and modern languages beginning in 1882 and until 1891, when his career as an educator ended due to poor health.

People's Institute

He founded and served as managing director of the People's Institute beginning in 1897. The work of the organization was focused in

The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art (Cooper Union) is a private college at Cooper Square in New York City. Peter Cooper founded the institution in 1859 after learning about the government-supported École Polytechnique in ...

, where Sprague Smith presided over the People's Forum that was influential within the state of New York and had a national reputation. The institute's work included a system of social and civic clubs, a bureau of civic and legislative information, and publicity of civic topics in the media. A program developed from the organization provided for more than 100,000 students and workers to attend music and theatre venues at a reduced rate. The institute was responsible for and administered the Board of Censorship of Motion Pictures. He was managing director until his death. The People's Institute flourished after his death. For instance,

John Collier John Collier may refer to: Arts and entertainment *John Collier (caricaturist) (1708–1786), English caricaturist and satirical poet *John Payne Collier (1789–1883), English Shakespearian critic and forger *John Collier (painter) (1850–1934), ...

worked as secretary of the People's Institute from 1907 to 1919. He developed programs for immigrant neighborhoods, emphasizing pride in their traditions, sponsoring lectures and pageants, and political awareness.

Other

He founded the Comparative Literature Society in 1895 and the Ethical - Social League to promote church and civic interests in 1907. He was organizing and managing director of the

Committee of Fifteen The Committee of Fifteen was a New York City citizens' group that lobbied for the elimination of prostitution and gambling. It was established in November 1900. The Committee hired investigators who visited city locations where prostitution and ...

. He wrote ''Working with People'' and ''Barbizon Days''.

Personal life

He married Isabelle Dwight on November 11, 1884 in Clinton, New York. She was an artist, teacher, and beginning in 1900, the principal of Veltin School for Girls. She was also a director of the People's Institute. They had a daughter, Hilda. They lived at 318 W. 15th Street in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

, New York. He was seriously ill with pneumonia and died on March 29 or 30 in 1910.

References

External links

''New York City Censorship of Plays''
by Francis Oppenheimer
Online books
by Charles Sprague Smith {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Charles Sprague 1853 births 1910 deaths Columbia University faculty Cooper Union Deaths from pneumonia in New York (state)