Robert Curtis Ogden (June 20, 1836 – August 6, 1913) was a businessman who promoted education in the

Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...

Biography

Ogden was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on June 20, 1836. He began work in a dry-goods store at 14 years of age, and moved with his family to New York City in 1852. By 1860, he had married Ellen Lewis, was living in Brooklyn, and was a partner in the clothing firm of Devlin and Company. He served a few months as a soldier during the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

. In 1861 he had visited the South as an agent of his firm. Once peace was established, he was much impressed by the work of his friend Samuel C. Armstrong, who founded and headed

Hampton Institute Hampton University is a private, historically black, research university in Hampton, Virginia. Founded in 1868 as Hampton Agricultural and Industrial School, it was established by Black and White leaders of the American Missionary Association af ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

. Ogden resolved to make similar efforts to promote education in the South. Eakins - Robert C Ogden

Schevill Karl Bitter Robert Ogden testimonial tablet

In 1879, he associated with

John Wanamaker John Wanamaker (July 11, 1838December 12, 1922) was an American merchant and religious, civic and political figure, considered by some to be a proponent of advertising and a "pioneer in marketing". He was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, a ...

in his retail operations in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

. He also became a trustee at Hampton and involved himself in the promotion of education for both blacks and whites in the South. He eventually headed the Southern Education Board which worked for better funding and higher standards for Southern schools. As a member of the

General Education Board The General Education Board was a private organization which was used primarily to support higher education and medical schools in the United States, and to help rural white and black schools in the South, as well as modernize farming practices i ...

, he participated in the funding of Southern educational projects. He was also president of the Conference for Education in the South. Booker Washington and some of his distinguished guests LCCN2004679030

Booker Washington and some of his distinguished guests LCCN2004679030

He was a great financial supporter of

Booker T. Washington Booker Taliaferro Washington (April 5, 1856November 14, 1915) was an American educator, author, orator, and adviser to several presidents of the United States. Between 1890 and 1915, Washington was the dominant leader in the African-American c ...

, and took part publicly speaking on his behalf, including at the

Tuskegee Institute Silver Anniversary Lecture The Tuskegee Institute Silver Anniversary Lecture was an event at Carnegie Hall on January 23, 1906, to support the education of African Americans in the South. It involved many prominent members of New York society, with speakers including Book ...

Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhatta ...

in 1906, where he introduced Washington after

Mark Twain Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher, and lecturer. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has p ...

had spoken. He received honorary degrees from several institutions. He was an elder and a liberal member of the

Presbyterian Church Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

. Ogden died on August 6, 1913, in Kennebunkport, Maine.

Literary works

* "Samuel Chapman Armstrong", Founder's Day address at Hampton Institute (1894) * ''Sunday School Teaching'' (1894) * ''Pew Rents and the New Testament'' (1892)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ogden, Robert Curtis 1836 births 1913 deaths American Presbyterians 19th-century American philanthropists 19th-century American businesspeople