Heman Humphrey (March 26, 1779 – April 3, 1861) was a 19th-century

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

and

clergyman Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

who served as a trustee of

Williams College Williams College is a Private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Williamstown, Massachusetts. It was established as a men's college in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim Williams, a col ...

and afterward as the second

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

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 ...

, a post he held for 22 years.Heman Humphrey: Second President
Amherst College Archives & Special Collections
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(amherstiana.org)
(amherstiana.org)

Early life and education

Humphrey was born in West Simsbury,

Hartford County, Connecticut Hartford County is a county located in the north central part of the U.S. state of Connecticut. According to the 2020 census, the population was 899,498, making it the second-most populous county in Connecticut. Hartford County contains the ...

(which became

Canton, Connecticut Canton is a town, incorporated in 1806, located in the Farmington Valley section of Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 10,124 as of the 2020 census. It is bordered by Granby on the north, Simsbury on the east, Avon a ...

) to farmer Solomon Humphrey, of a family that came from England before 1643, and Hannah, daughter of Captain John Brown. Humphrey graduated from

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

with an A.M. in 1805 and was ordained a Congregational minister on March 16, 1807. He became a minister in

Fairfield, Connecticut Fairfield is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. It borders the city of Bridgeport and towns of Trumbull, Easton, Weston, and Westport along the Gold Coast of Connecticut. Located within the New York metropolitan area ...

, in 1807, moving to

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� ...

, in 1817. His 1813 report to the Fairfield Association is one of the earliest temperance tracts published in America. Humphrey is also said to have published six articles in ''The Panoplist and Missionary Magazine'' on the cause, origin, effects and remedy of intemperance. Following his tenure at Williams College, in 1825 he was appointed president of Amherst. He was elected a Fellow of the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and ...

in 1842. Humphrey was influential in the nineteenth-century

temperance movement The temperance movement is a social movement promoting temperance or complete abstinence from consumption of alcoholic beverages. Participants in the movement typically criticize alcohol intoxication or promote teetotalism, and its leaders emph ...

and typical of the early proponents of prohibition.(Hugins, Walter (ed.), The Reform Impulse, 1825–1850). Columbia, SC 1972 He was the father of

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

James Humphrey.

Bibliography

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References

1779 births 1861 deaths American Congregationalist ministers Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Presidents of Amherst College People from Simsbury, Connecticut Yale University alumni People from Canton, Connecticut People from Fairfield, Connecticut 19th-century Congregationalist ministers {{US-Christian-clergy-stub