By Shelley Burtner Wallace

“The world is a mirror, giving back to every man a reflection of his own face; smile at it–it smiles in turn; frown at it–the frown comes back to you.”
–-Miss A.L. Cass – Annual Exhibition, July 1882

The attitudes and values of the Hartwick Seminarians during the 19th and early 20th centuries are reflected in the various academic and leisure activities which formed the culture on the campus at Hartwick Seminary, NY.

Between 1815 and 1930, the Hartwick Seminary campus was located on a piece of the original Hartwick Patent, just three miles south of Cooperstown. The Seminary was actually two boarding schools combined: a theological seminary and a Christian high school–frequently referred to as “the Academy.” The Academy’s enrollment ranged from 19 scholars on opening day in 1815 to 115 in 1857, whereas the number of students in the Seminary averaged between 10 and 12 throughout its history. Their community, however, was not the isolated, provincial environment we might assume from their small population and remote location. The students were well informed in national and international affairs, as well as current scientific, political and religious issues.

The men’s Philophronean debating society, organized in 1816 by a student from Cooperstown, Rensselaer Williams Russell, promoted skills in composition, rhetoric and debate. Generally the society met once a week and debated the topic that had been assigned the previous week. The topics ranged from national and international affairs, historic to current events, and scholarly issues to familial concerns. A sampling of these debates follows with the decision indicated in brackets:

25 October 1826
Who deserves the most praise–Columbus for discovering America or Washington for freeing it?
[Washington]

23 November 1831
Were the Russians justified in commencing hostilities against the Poles?
[Negative]

20 March 1852
Has the agitation of the slavery issue in the free states hastened the downfall of slavery in the South?
[Affirmative]

5 January 1855
Which is the greater curse to man–a scolding wife or a dissipated son?
[Dissipated son]

24 October 1856
Do facts or fiction contribute the most to mental enjoyment?
[Facts]

24 February 1860
Is the accumulation of territories injurious to the Union?
[Affirmative]

14 December 1860
Do the signs of the times indicate the final overthrow of tyranny and oppression?
[Negative]

24 January 1868
Has the late Civil War been productive of more good than evil?
[Good]

The results of these debates may indicate a majority consensus of opinion OR a vote for the most persuasive debaters. In either case, the questions themselves are indicative of student concerns and issues.

Debating was more formalized in one of the most prominent events of Seminary life–the exhibitions. Items on the program at annual exhibitions included orations, essays, songs, recitations and instrumental music. On such occasions the students waxed eloquently. In July of 1900 Dorr McLaury patriotically concluded his talk on “American Expansion” with “when the empires of the earth consult as to their future course, may this mighty nation be proud to exclaim: ‘Our course of empire is both east and west!'” Charles Milton Karg’s speech on “John Brown” proclaimed that “the South had slain the man but the spirit which animated him was beyond the reach of earthly power…his spirit went marching on…It swept from ocean to ocean…It recruited armies…It stormed Vicksburg…It hovered over the field of Gettysburg…and when at last at Appomattox, it had fulfilled its mission and taken its flight heavenward, the lowering clouds of slavery and oppression parted, and forth in radiant glory, burst the sun of emancipation.”

As Lutheran Christians, the Seminarians obviously thought a great deal about righteousness and religious piety. At the annual exhibition in 1882, one student claimed that “all labor is honorable. God’s price is set, not only upon every work but upon noble pleasure.” Another stated that “in the Presidential chair, in Congress, in the pulpit–everywhere, we want men of sound principles and character who will deal mighty blows for truth and right.” In July of 1902, George Bilderbeck spoke on the “Elements of Character”:

Character is the summit of being–the moral order seen through the medium of an individual. Character is a constant–reputation is a variable, the one depends on moral law, the other on the opinions of men.

In 1923 Bernice Crounse urged, “Let us be always glad to do all we can to help out and do it in a sweet willing way, not because we must but because we want to do it.”

Students also won honors for their oratory. Caleb Hall, of Pittsfield, NY, made a generous monetary donation that made possible the annual awards of C.G. Hall Prizewinners. Beginning in 1896, this event included readings and examinations on Washington’s Farewell Address. Faculty judges awarded two dollars for the three best examinations and one dollar for the four best readings of the address.

Numerous leisure activities were planned by the professors. In 1882 Professor James Pitcher, determined to have a course of entertainment for the benefit of the students, organized a lecture on ecclesiastical law, recitations of prose and poetry, and a lecture on “The mirthful side of Life”–the emphasis on “benefit of the students” being pleasurable activities that also stimulated the mind. As a guest speaker at the Seminary in 1916, Charles Sternberg lectured on evolution, which was not only highly entertaining but offered scientific support for students’ religious ideology. The student newspaper reported that “in his [Sternberg’s] extended study of fossils he has been unable to find any evidence that one family of animals has ever changed by evolution into another family. The horse traced back to its three-toed ancestor was always a horse. No monkey ever became a man and there is no link to connect the two. The primitive man was a man.”

Even the Seminary parties were not without educational value. In 1908, the young ladies of the Seminary hosted a Valentine’s party.

The young men were somewhat at a loss to know from whom their invitations came, as they were anonymous except for the words “Your Valentine.”

When the guests arrived at eight o’clock…each one was presented with a couple of pink card-board hearts, fastened together by a cord, attached to a tiny pink pencil. On one of these hearts, were written twelve topics of general interest for conversation, and on the other was a list of numbers from one to twelve, with blank spaces for names. Each of the young men sought a partner for conversation. Five minutes was allowed for each topic; thus a very enjoyable hour was spent, not without profit.
–Seminary Monthly, March 1908

The ability to articulate one’s thoughts and beliefs, to communicate with people in a meaningful manner, and to present a persuasive argument were, for the Seminarians, signs of an educated and responsible citizen. As we approach the 21st century, we would be well advised to listen to our past, for the Hartwick Seminarians used their voices well.

[This article was published in Hartwick’s alumni magazine The Wick in the Fall of 1996.]