— 192.9 Schools of the Lake Country N its educational facilities, no district of equaFarea proudly'hand in hand with progress. In 1795 Gov- in the world boasts of greater wealth than the'Fin- ernor George Clinton laid the foundation for the com- I a theological mon school system, when he recommended to the ger Lakes Region. With five colleges, seminary, numerous Legislature the es- private academies r tablishment of such and literally hun- schools throughout dreds of grade and the state. The sum high schools, the of ?50,000 was ap- district not alone propriated for this provides the best purpose. Such ac- in education for its tion was the signal own youth, but gives for real impetus to training to thous- education through- ands of students from out the lake coun outside the region try, although before who are resident in this time, crude cab- the lake country in schools had been during the college for several years in terms. Just outside existence in many the region are other of the lake settle- big universities. ments. Half the high The first school schools nave agri- opened in T i og a cultural courses. County was one Many have special- taught by David ized technical cours- McMaster, in the es. And in addition, Newark Valley set- the state experiment tlement, in 1796- station at Geneva '97, in the bark cov- and the State Col- ered shanty of Elisha lege of Agriculture Willson a portion of at Ithaca add to the time and in the advanced study Josiah Ball's shoe- provided by Cornell shop the remainder, University, Elmira Log school houses College for Women, were built previous Wells College for to 1800 in several of Women, Hobart and the settlements of William Smith Col- the county, the first lege and Keuka Col- frame one being in lege. To these school Owego in 1802. resources are added The first public numerous private school in Chemung business schools and county was prob- several academies, ably on the site of preparatory schools the present town of and conservatories. Chemung, but there From the early was one taught by times when settlers Miss Amelia Park- followed the trail hurst in 1793 in the blazed by Sullivan, town of Horseheads. training of the youth Elmira's first village has been a para- school opened in mount objective in 1817, the paths to the lake country, it leading through the woods. where education, that bulwark of de- As early as 1790 mocracv, has gone Library Tower, Cornell the first primitive page seventy-two mM\M J779 192.9 schools appeared in Ontario County, in 1795 the the public schools there goes back to 1816. The first famous old Canandaigua Academy was founded by Teachers' Institute in the state was held at Ithaca Phelps and Gorham and it is known that the pre- April 4, 1843. In early days the private academy was decessor of the Geneva Academy, Geneva, operated virtually the only means of education except for the as early as 1796. lowest grades; it soon gave place to the High School, Auburn's first school was a log cabin opened in 1796 which until more recent years formed the highest almost on the site of the present Holy Family school, education which the majority of the youth of the lake two years before the first white child was born in the country acquired. Then came the colleges, with the settlement. lake country leading in their establishment. Today, In Ithaca, Tompkins County records show that the specialists in pedagogy in the lake region are num- residents as early as 1796 were represented in the man- bered in hundreds. The names of approximately 100 agement of the existing schools. Recorded history of Finger Lakes college professors appear in Who's Who. Above is shown beautiful Keuka College whose campus lies along the shore of Lake Above is the way the Cornell University Keuka at Keuka Park. campus looks from an airplane To the right is an airplane view of Au- Below, to the left, is shown the quad- burn Theological Seminary, now staging ;i rangle of Hobart College at Geneva. 21,2^0,000 expansion campaign Below is one of the buildings of Elmira Below is shown a corner of the campus of College the oldest college for women in Wells College, at Aurora on Cayuga Lake. America. page seventy-three 1779 — I92.9 Cornell University Federal appropriations, is about Cornell University, founded in $7,000,000. Its total equipment is 1865 and opened to students in 1868, valued at $14,000,000. The library now has a staff of instruction, re- comprises 750,000 volumes. %,? search, and extension numbering Associated with Ezra Cornell in more than 1,100 persons and an en- the foundation was a fellow State rollment of 5,600 students. Its Senator, Andrew D. White, who campus of 360 acres in the eastern drew up the plan of organization and part of the town of Ithaca contains became the University's first presi- more than sixty buildings devoted dent. He retired in 1885 and de- to the University's work. Alto- voted the rest of a long life to schol- gether, including land acquired and arship and to public service, holding used for purposes of experiment and several important diplomatic posts. demonstration, the University owns His successor was the late Charles 4,000 acres in Ithaca and near it. Kendall Adams. From 1892 till A part of this domain is the Arnot 1920 the president was Jacob Gould Forest of 1,800 acres in the town of Schurman, now the American am- Cayuta. bassador at Berlin. Dr. Livingston The University comprises a grad- Farrand has been president since uate school, a college of arts and 1921. sciences, a medical college, a law In recent years the University school, and colleges of engineering has received large gifts from George and architecture, besides the three F. Baker for a chemistry laboratory New York State colleges of agri- and for dormitories, from Myron culture, home economics, and veter- C. Taylor for new buildings for the inary medicine and surgery. The On the Campus at Wells law school, and from the late Payne State agricultural experiment sta- Whitney for the medical college's tion at Geneva, with buildings and equip- experimental farms in ment in the new med- Chautauqua county, in ical center. Alumni the Hudson river val- and others have con- ley, and on Long Island tributed funds for a is also a part of Cor- beautiful building in nell University. Re- memory of the 250 cently the medical col- Cornell men who lost lege, which was estab- their lives in the war. lished in New York Four large residence City and Ithaca in halls for women are 1898, has become as- nearing completion, the sociated with New York gift of two anonymous Hospital in a new med- donors. ical center at York Wells College Avenue and 68th street overlooking the East Wells College for River. women is situated in Established on New the little village of York State's share of Aurora, immediately on the Federal land grant the shore of Lake Cay- of 1862, the University uga. Adjoining its owes its foundation in campus is the Payne a larger sense to Ezra Creek Gully, familiarly Cornell, who devoted known as Moonshine, a large part of his own and just beyond the fortune to it and whose strange geological for- management of the University's lands real- mation known to scien- ized a net return of tists as Pumpkin Hill. 24,000,000 in endow- The founder, Henry ment. The present en- Wells, was also the dowment is about $20,- founder of the roman- 000,000. The Univer- tic Wells Fargo Ex- sity's annual income, press in the East One including State and npus Scene at Syracuse University of the College treas- page seventy-four 192-9 ures is a genuine old Wells Fargo coach. Mr. Wells' home Glen Park, is now one of the academic build- ings of Wells College. Other gentlemen assoc- iated with the College in its early days were Colonel Edwin Barbour Morgan, the first president of the New York Times Associa- tion and Lewis Henry Mor- gan, the anthropologist, whose grand nephew, Wm. Fellowes Morgan, is at present the chairman of the Boa rd of Trustees. Keuka College on Lake Keuka The founder's original gift of one building and eleven acres has now expanded in 1822, largely through the efforts of Bishop John to 350 acres and twelve academic buildings, besides Henry Hobart. It was the successor to Geneva Acad- residences for its staff, dairy farm, etc. The endow- emy, a school that had begun serving the thinly settled ment fund amounts to #1,500,000. The several depart- territory of Western New York a quarter of a century ments are well equipped, especially Art, Music, the before, and its founders were actuated by a strong Natural Sciences and Health Education. In addition desire to extend larger educational opportunities to to the usual outdoor athletic fields, the College has its the people in that region. Their plans, perhaps because own nine-hole golf course. of this, were exceptionally broad and farsighted for Wells College from its inception has been both the times. home and school. For this reason it has remained There was ample precedent for the inclusion of small, (240 students, 37 on the faculty), as no more restrictive clauses in the Charter. One restriction only students are accepted than can be received into the was written into it by its predominantly Episcopalian College home.