Samuel Harris (June 14, 1814 – June 25, 1899) was the fifth president of

Bowdoin College Bowdoin College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Brunswick, Maine. When Bowdoin was chartered in 1794, Maine was still a part of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The college offers 34 majors and 36 minors, as well as several joint eng ...

and the first to be an alumnus. After having left Bowdoin in 1871, he went on to teach at

Yale Divinity School Yale Divinity School (YDS) is one of the twelve graduate and professional schools of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. Congregationalist theological education was the motivation at the founding of Yale, and the professional school has ...

for 25 years.

Career

Harris was born in

East Machias, Maine East Machias is a New England town, town in Washington County, Maine, Washington County, Maine, United States on the Machias River, East Machias River. At the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the town population was 1,326. It is the home of ...

on June 14, 1814 and attended Washington Academy in the same town. After having graduated from Bowdoin in 1833, he attended

Andover Theological Seminary Andover Theological Seminary (1807–1965) was a Congregationalist seminary founded in 1807 and originally located in Andover, Massachusetts on the campus of Phillips Academy. From 1908 to 1931, it was located at Harvard University in Cambridge. ...

in Massachusetts. Harris had been a pastor in

Conway, Massachusetts Conway is a town in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 1,761 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. History Conway was first settled by English colonists ...

and

Pittsfield, Massachusetts Pittsfield is the largest city and the county seat of Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the principal city of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Berkshire County. Pittsfield� ...

from 1841 to 1855 and had taught at the Divinity School in

Bangor, Maine Bangor ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Maine and the county seat of Penobscot County. The city proper has a population of 31,753, making it the state's 3rd-largest settlement, behind Portland (68,408) and Lewiston (37,121). Modern Bangor ...

before becoming president of Bowdoin in 1867. Having lived in

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...

throughout the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

, he was considered by many as a candidate for the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

. Nevertheless, Harris resigned from his position at Bowdoin in 1871 after having grown tired of such activities as fund-raising. In the same year, he began working at Yale as the Dwight Professor of Systematic Theology. There, he wrote much more often, especially in the 1880s when he published his first major work, ''The Philosophical Basis of Theism'', which received notice from England to Japan. Additionally, ''God the Creator and Lord of All'' explained his doctrinal system and he had been writing an unfinished book at the time of his death. When he resigned in 1895, he was given the title of Professor Emeritus. He continued to lecture at the school for an additional two years before permanently retiring. He died at his summer home in

Litchfield, Connecticut Litchfield is a town in and former county seat of Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 8,192 at the 2020 census. The boroughs of Bantam and Litchfield are located within the town. There are also three unincorporat ...

on June 25, 1899.

Published works

Lectures

* ''The Kingdom of Christ on Earth'' (1875) * ''The Philosophical Basis of Theism'' (1888) * ''The Self-Revelation of God'' * ''God the Creator and Lord of All''

References

External links

Samuel, Harris Administrative RecordsJSTOR: Church History, Vol. 26, No. 1 (March., 1957), pp. 74-75
{{DEFAULTSORT:Harris, Samuel 1814 births 1899 deaths Presidents of Bowdoin College Bowdoin College alumni People from Bangor, Maine People from East Machias, Maine Bangor Theological Seminary faculty Yale Divinity School faculty People from Conway, Massachusetts People from Pittsfield, Massachusetts Academics from Maine