Harcourt Morgan
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John Harcourt Alexander Morgan (August 31, 1867 – August 25, 1950) was a Canadian-American
entomologist Entomology () is the scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. In the past the term "insect" was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of animals in other arthropod groups, such as arach ...
, educator, and agricultural expert, who served as president of the
University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee (officially The University of Tennessee, Knoxville; or UT Knoxville; UTK; or UT) is a public land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 1794, two years before Tennessee became the 16th state, ...
from 1919 until 1934. In 1933, he was appointed to the inaugural board of the
Tennessee Valley Authority The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is a federally owned electric utility corporation in the United States. TVA's service area covers all of Tennessee, portions of Alabama, Mississippi, and Kentucky, and small areas of Georgia, North Carolina ...
, with which he remained until 1948, including three years (1938–1941) as chairman. In both capacities, he promoted a philosophy known as "the common mooring," which stressed a harmonious relationship between man and the environment, and consistently worked to introduce more efficient and less destructive farming techniques in the Tennessee Valley.Milton Klein,
John Harcourt Alexander Morgan
" ''Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture'', 2009. Retrieved: 1 May 2012.


Early life

Morgan was born in 1867 and raised by his parents Rebecca (née Truman) and John Morgan on a farm near Kerwood in Adelaide Township, Ontario. He attended the
University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...
's
Ontario Agricultural College The Ontario Agricultural College (OAC) originated at the agricultural laboratories of the Toronto Normal School, and was officially founded in 1874 as an associate agricultural college of the University of Toronto. Since 1964, it has become affili ...
, earning his Bachelor of Science in 1889. He briefly attended
Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teach an ...
and conducted research at the
Marine Biological Laboratory The Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) is an international center for research and education in biological and environmental science. Founded in Woods Hole, Massachusetts, in 1888, the MBL is a private, nonprofit institution that was independent ...
before accepting a position as professor of entomology at
Louisiana State University Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 nea ...
.Milton Klein,
'The State is the University's Campus:' Harcourt A. Morgan, Thirteenth President of UT
." University of Tennessee website. Retrieved: 1 May 2012.
At LSU, Morgan studied two parasitical insects, the
cattle tick Cattle tick can refer to any of several species of ticks that parasitize cattle, including: * ''Haemaphysalis longicornis'', the Asian longhorned tick * ''Rhipicephalus annulatus'', the North American cattle tick * ''Rhipicephalus microplus The ...
and the cotton boll weevil, both of which had proven destructive to farmers in the state. Camping out in pastures and cotton fields, Morgan collected invaluable data on the habits of both insects that finally enabled scientists to get their populations under control. But the boll weevil infested cotton crops throughout the South in the early 20th century, causing much destruction and costing countless agricultural jobs.Jack Neely,
The Common Mooring
" Tennessee Valley Authority website. Retrieved: 1 May 2012.
Morgan's role in fighting the cattle tick and boll weevil infestations endeared him to many of the state's farmers and gained the respect of regional agricultural experts.


Marriage and family

After getting established in teaching and research, Morgan married Sara Elizabeth Fay. They had four children together: Harcourt Jr.; John, Fay, and Lucy.


University of Tennessee

In 1904, the University of Tennessee hired
Tulane Tulane University, officially the Tulane University of Louisiana, is a private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by seven young medical doctors, it turned into a comprehensive pub ...
professor Brown Ayres as president. While living in Louisiana, Ayres had become familiar with Morgan's work, and invited him to join U.T.'s faculty as professor of entomology and zoology, and director of the school's agricultural experimental station. In 1913, Morgan was named Dean of the school's College of Agriculture. Morgan shared Ayres' view that the university's extension services were as important as the school's teaching mission, as they believed that many of the South's agricultural problems were due to lack of information among the region's farmers. During this period, Morgan developed a philosophy known as "the common mooring," which stressed a harmonious relationship between man and the environment, and taught that human endeavors should align with the demands of nature.Sarah T. Phillips,
This Land, This Nation: Conservation, Rural America, and the New Deal
' (2007), pp. 90–91.
Morgan believed that the South's overemphasis on commodity row crops such as cotton and tobacco, which were harmful to the soil, threw this relationship out of balance. He held numerous demonstrations and exhibits that encouraged area farmers to practice
crop rotation Crop rotation is the practice of growing a series of different types of crops in the same area across a sequence of growing seasons. It reduces reliance on one set of nutrients, pest and weed pressure, and the probability of developing resistant ...
, replace
row crop A row crop is a crop that can be planted in rows wide enough to allow it to be tilled or otherwise cultivated by agricultural machinery, machinery tailored for the seasonal activities of row crops. Such crops are sown by drilling or transplanti ...
s with soil-enriching grasses,
clover Clover or trefoil are common names for plants of the genus ''Trifolium'' (from Latin ''tres'' 'three' + ''folium'' 'leaf'), consisting of about 300 species of flowering plants in the legume or pea family Fabaceae originating in Europe. The genus ...
s, and
legume A legume () is a plant in the family Fabaceae (or Leguminosae), or the fruit or seed of such a plant. When used as a dry grain, the seed is also called a pulse. Legumes are grown agriculturally, primarily for human consumption, for livestock f ...
s, avoid planting corn on hill slopes (a practice in which many East Tennessee mountain farmers were adept), and improve eroded pastures with
lime Lime commonly refers to: * Lime (fruit), a green citrus fruit * Lime (material), inorganic materials containing calcium, usually calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide * Lime (color), a color between yellow and green Lime may also refer to: Botany ...
and
phosphate In chemistry, a phosphate is an anion, salt, functional group or ester derived from a phosphoric acid. It most commonly means orthophosphate, a derivative of orthophosphoric acid . The phosphate or orthophosphate ion is derived from phospho ...
. Morgan's extension work earned him the trust of Tennessee's farmers, which in turn brought influence among the state's politicians. This proved critical at a time when the state's three
Grand Divisions The Grand Divisions are three geographic regions in the U.S. state of Tennessee, each constituting roughly one-third of the state's land area, that are geographically, culturally, legally, and economically distinct. The Grand Divisions are lega ...
still harbored
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 ...
-era animosities. Many state politicians disliked the idea that
East Tennessee East Tennessee is one of the three Grand Divisions of Tennessee defined in state law. Geographically and socioculturally distinct, it comprises approximately the eastern third of the U.S. state of Tennessee. East Tennessee consists of 33 count ...
, which had been sympathetic to the
Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...
, was the site of the state's
land-grant A land grant is a gift of real estate—land or its use privileges—made by a government or other authority as an incentive, means of enabling works, or as a reward for services to an individual, especially in return for military service. Grants ...
institution. In 1915, Morgan convinced Governor Tom Rye to approve a one million dollar appropriation for the university. During
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, Morgan was appointed as the state of Tennessee's Food Administrator. After being selected as U.T.'s president following Ayres' death in 1919, Morgan managed to convince Governor Austin Peay to appropriate several million dollars for the university, which Morgan used to expand the school. During Morgan's presidency, the student population quadrupled, and several new buildings were constructed, including Ayres Hall and many of the buildings on "The Hill," as well as Shields-Watkins Field, the forerunner of
Neyland Stadium Neyland Stadium ( ), is a sports stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States. It serves primarily as the home of the Tennessee Volunteers football team, but is also used to host large conventions and has been a site for several National Footb ...
. As the university became more reliant on state appropriations, Morgan grew wary of agitating state legislators. In 1923, a controversy known as the "Slaughter of the Ph.Ds" erupted when Morgan allowed the dismissal of seven faculty members whom administrators considered to be "troublemakers".William Bruce Wheeler,
Knoxville, Tennessee: A Mountain City in the New South
' (Knoxville, Tenn.: University of Tennessee Press, 2005), p. 54.
The dismissal of eccentric law professor John R. Neal sparked an outcry among law school alumni, and Morgan was forced to defend the university's actions before Governor Peay and the Board of Trustees.Bobby Hicks, "The Great Objector: The Life and Career of Dr. John Randolph Neal," East Tennessee Historical Society ''Publications'', Vol. 41 (1969), pp. 40–42. When the state passed the
Butler Act The Butler Act was a 1925 Tennessee law prohibiting public school teachers from denying the Biblical account of mankind's origin. The law also prevented the teaching of the evolution of man from what it referred to as lower orders of animals in ...
barring the teaching of the
theory of evolution Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation t ...
in 1925, many of the state's university leaders opposed the bill and looked to Morgan and U.T. for leadership. In spite of reservations about the law, however, Morgan did not speak out about the issue. In 1927 Morgan served as president of the
National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges The Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) is a research, policy, and advocacy organization of public research universities, land-grant institutions, state university systems, and higher education organizations. It has member c ...
. He served as president of the university until 1934, following his appointment to the board of the
Tennessee Valley Authority The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is a federally owned electric utility corporation in the United States. TVA's service area covers all of Tennessee, portions of Alabama, Mississippi, and Kentucky, and small areas of Georgia, North Carolina ...
.


Tennessee Valley Authority

In 1933, President
Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
appointed Morgan to the inaugural board of the newly formed
Tennessee Valley Authority The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is a federally owned electric utility corporation in the United States. TVA's service area covers all of Tennessee, portions of Alabama, Mississippi, and Kentucky, and small areas of Georgia, North Carolina ...
, along with Arthur E. Morgan (no relation), a civil engineer and educator, as Chairman, and
David Lilienthal David Eli Lilienthal (July 8, 1899 – January 15, 1981) was an American attorney and public administrator, best known for his Presidential Appointment to head Tennessee Valley Authority and later the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC). He had p ...
, an attorney and public administrator in public utility law. Chosen for his agricultural expertise and familiarity with the region's people, Harcourt Morgan considered TVA's unified approach to agricultural and resource development to be the ultimate opportunity to implement his "common mooring" ideas.Richard Colignon,
Power Plays: Critical Events in the Institutionalization of the Tennessee Valley Authority
' (Albany: State University of New York Press, 1997), pp. 119–120.
In TVA's early years, he would provide a critical connection between the agency and the often suspicious local population. From the outset, Harcourt Morgan and Lilienthal found themselves at odds with the chairman, Arthur Morgan. Whereas the chairman sought to work directly with farmers, Harcourt Morgan insisted on working through the extension services of state agencies and land grant colleges, to make the best use of existing networks. The chairman also sought to work with private power companies operating in the valley, whereas Lilienthal supported public control of the valley's power resources. Lilienthal and Harcourt Morgan consistently voted down the chairman's initiatives, leading the chairman to accuse them of dishonesty and fraud. In March 1938, President Roosevelt summoned the three to Washington to discuss their issues. When the chairman was unable to give specific examples of dishonesty on the part of his two fellow directors, he was removed. A subsequent congressional investigation also cleared Harcourt Morgan and Lilienthal of any wrongdoing.Erwin Hargrove and Paul Conkin, ''TVA: Fifty Years of Grass-Roots Bureaucracy'' (Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1983), pp. 45, 95–98. After Arthur Morgan's removal, Harcourt Morgan was appointed as chairman. Preferring to focus on his agricultural initiatives, he delegated most of his chairmanship duties to Lilienthal. Morgan consistently argued in favor of the region's farming interests. In 1938, he briefly clashed with conservationist
Gifford Pinchot Gifford Pinchot (August 11, 1865October 4, 1946) was an American forester and politician. He served as the fourth chief of the U.S. Division of Forestry, as the first head of the United States Forest Service, and as the 28th governor of Pennsy ...
, who believed Morgan was neglecting TVA's forestry initiatives in favor of agricultural interests. Morgan opposed the
Douglas Dam Douglas Dam is a hydroelectric dam on the French Broad River in Sevier County, Tennessee, in the southeastern United States. The dam is operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), which built the dam in record time in the early 1940s to me ...
project because it would inundate some of the state's best farmland, and had similar reservations about the
Fort Loudoun Dam Fort Loudoun Dam is a hydroelectric dam on the Tennessee River in Loudon County, Tennessee, in the southeastern United States. The dam is operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), which built the dam in the early 1940s as part of a unif ...
project.Walter Creese, ''TVA's Public Planning: The Vision, the Reality'' (Knoxville, Tenn.: University of Tennessee Press, 1990), pp. 156, 206, 272. Morgan served as chairman until 1941, and remained on the board as a director until 1948. Lilienthal later wrote that he and Harcourt Morgan's personalities complemented one another, stating that Morgan was instrumental in getting the conservative local population to accept the agency's progressive initiatives, while Lilienthal in turn dealt with many of the agency's critics in Washington. Morgan was unimpressed with his colleague's book about the TVA, ''Democracy on the March'', concluding that Lilienthal apparently never understood his "common mooring" philosophy.


Death and legacy

After retiring from TVA, Morgan, then in his 80s, continued to tour the state and lecture on his common mooring philosophy. He died on August 25, 1950, and is buried in Knoxville's Greenwood Cemetery. *Morgan was awarded an honorary doctorate from
Emory and Henry College Emory & Henry College (E&H or Emory) is a private liberal arts college in Emory, Virginia. The campus comprises of Washington County, which is part of the Appalachian highlands of Southwest Virginia. Founded in 1836, Emory & Henry College is ...
. *''
The Progressive Farmer ''Progressive Farmer'' is an agricultural magazine, published 14 times a year by Data Transmission Network, DTN. The magazine is based in Birmingham, Alabama, Birmingham, Alabama. History Founded in Winston, North Carolina, in 1886 by North Car ...
'' named him "Man of the Year" in 1940. *Morgan Hall, the main building of the University of Tennessee's College of Agriculture, is named for him.


References


External links


Finding Aid for Harcourt Alexander Morgan papers
– U.T. Special Collections {{DEFAULTSORT:Morgan, Harcourt 1867 births 1950 deaths Leaders of the University of Tennessee Knoxville Canadian emigrants to the United States People from Middlesex County, Ontario People from Knoxville, Tennessee American entomologists Tennessee Valley Authority Franklin D. Roosevelt administration personnel Louisiana State University faculty