Daniel C. Van Norman (August 17, 1815 - June 24, 1886) was a Canadian educator, clergyman, and school founder, who later moved to New York City.

Early life and education

Daniel Cummings Van Norman was born in

Nelson Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...

Canada West The Province of Canada (or the United Province of Canada or the United Canadas) was a British colony in British North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, in the Report ...

, August 17, 1815. After a thorough preparatory course, he entered Hamilton College, in

Hamilton, Ontario Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario. Hamilton has a 2021 Canadian census, population of 569,353 (2021), and its Census Metropolitan Area, census metropolitan area, which encompasses ...

. Van Norman was one of some 25 or 30 students who came over from Canada during the first decade of the

Methodist Episcopal Church The Methodist Episcopal Church (MEC) was the oldest and largest Methodist denomination in the United States from its founding in 1784 until 1939. It was also the first religious denomination in the US to organize itself nationally. In 1939, th ...

-sponsored Cazenovia Seminary, in

Cazenovia, New York Cazenovia is an incorporated Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town in Madison County, New York, United States. The population was 6,740 at the time of the 2020 census. The town is named after Theophilus Cazenove, Theophile Cazenove, th ...

, where he was a student 1833–36. He was graduated at

Wesleyan University Wesleyan University ( ) is a Private university, private liberal arts college, liberal arts university in Middletown, Connecticut, United States. It was founded in 1831 as a Men's colleges in the United States, men's college under the Methodi ...

in 1838.

Career

He joined the Canada Wesleyan conference in 1839, and was appointed professor of classics and physics in Victoria College (now

Victoria University, Toronto Victoria University is a federated college of the University of Toronto located at the St. George campus in Downtown Toronto. The school was founded in 1836 by the Wesleyan Methodist Church of Canada as a nonsectarian literary institution. From ...

Cobourg Cobourg ( ) is a town in the Canadian province of Ontario, located in Southern Ontario east of Toronto and east of Oshawa. It is the largest town in and seat of Northumberland County. Its nearest neighbour is Port Hope, to the west. It is ...

, in 1839-45. In 1844, Van Norman was ordained to the ministry. He founded the Burlington ladies' academy,

, in 1845, and was its principal till 1851. In 1851, he assumed the charge of Rutgers Female Institute,

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, which post he held till 1857. He then founded and became principal of the Van Norman Institute, a school for young ladies, conducting it until the spring of 1886. Van Norman wrote many articles for newspapers. In conjunction with Louise Pujol, he wrote a complete French text book. He received the degree of

LL.D. A Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) is a doctoral degree in legal studies. The abbreviation LL.D. stands for ''Legum Doctor'', with the double “L” in the abbreviation referring to the early practice in the University of Cambridge to teach both canon law ...

from Wesleyan University in 1860. Although he held no regular pastorate, he preached more than 4,000 sermons. Late in life, Van Norman left the Methodist and united with the Presbyterian church. He was recording secretary of the American Foreign and Christian Union for many years, and was one of the founders of the American Chapel in Paris. Later in life, an Elder in the Central Presbyterian Church. He was also a member of the Society of Science and Art, and

Alpha Delta Phi Alpha Delta Phi (; commonly known as Alpha Delt, AD, ADPhi, A-Delt, or ADP) is a North American Greek-letter social college fraternity. Alpha Delta Phi was originally founded as a literary society by Samuel Eells in 1832 at Hamilton College in ...

fraternity.

Personal life

He married Sarah Maria Spencer, of Cazenovia, New York; they had four children. In 1875, he married Amelie Veiller of

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, France.

Death and legacy

Van Norman was taken with a stroke of paralysis on April 5, 1886, which proved fatal. He died at his residence on West 57th Street, in New York City, June 24, 1886. A monument to his memory was erected at

Jamaica, Queens Jamaica is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens. It has a popular large commercial and retail area, though part of the neighborhood is also residential. Jamaica is bordered by Hollis, St Albans, and Cambria Heights to the ea ...

, in 1900.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Van Norman, Daniel C. 1815 births 1886 deaths School founders People from Nelson, British Columbia Canadian emigrants to the United States Canadian Methodist ministers Canadian Presbyterian ministers Educators from New York City 19th-century American Methodist ministers 19th-century American Presbyterian ministers Cazenovia College alumni Wesleyan University alumni Founders of American schools and colleges