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Philip Lindsley Letters
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Held at: Princeton University Library: Manuscripts Division [Contact Us]
This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held at the Princeton University Library: Manuscripts Division. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in their reading room, and not digitally available through the web.
Overview and metadata sections
Philip Lindsley, an educator, Presbyterian minister, and classical scholar, was born in Basking Ridge, New Jersey. In 1802 he was admitted to the junior class of the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University), from which he graduated in 1804. He returned to the college as tutor in 1807, and to study theology under President Samuel Stanhope Smith. In 1813 Lindsley was made professor of languages, librarian, inspector (dean), and secretary of the Board of Trustees. By the time he was elected vice-president of the College of New Jersey in 1817, Lindsley was recognized as one of the foremost classical scholars in the United States. In 1822 he was made acting president of Princeton. The next year he was offered the permanent presidency not only of Princeton but also of several colleges and universities, including the struggling Cumberland College in Nashville, Tennessee, but he declined them all. In 1824, though, he changed his mind and accepted the position in Nashville. The next year, at Lindsley's instigation, the college's name was changed to University of Nashville. He wrote: "Throughout the immense valley of the lower Mississippi, containing at least a million of inhabitants, there exists not a single college." His effect on public opinion appeared in the fact the that by 1848 there were twenty colleges in Tennessee.
The collection consists of selected letters of Philip Lindsley, both original and copies. Included are a letter (1826) to Rev. Robert Baird concerning a description of Nashville and other matters; a letter (1837) to Lewis J. Cist to let him know that on account of illness he was not able to examine his collection of papers for names to be included in Cist's publication; one letter (1823) to Rev. Ashbel Green asking his advice on accepting the presidency of Cumberland College; three letters to Rev. James Richards, one of them (1823) asking for a bigger salary and a larger house and one (1823) concerning his call to the presidency of Princeton University. Also included is a letter (1823) to an unidentified person recommending the Bloomfield Academy in New Jersey, from which many students attended the College of New Jersey (now Princeton).
Arranged by accession number.
The collection was formed as a result of a Departmental practice of combining into one collection material of various accessions relating to a particular person, family, or subject.
The original letter (1823) to an unidentified person was a gift of Dr. Gilbert C. Norton, Princeton Class of 1939, on May 9, 1990.
For preservation reasons, original analog and digital media may not be read or played back in the reading room. Users may visually inspect physical media but may not remove it from its enclosure. All analog audiovisual media must be digitized to preservation-quality standards prior to use. Audiovisual digitization requests are processed by an approved third-party vendor. Please note, the transfer time required can be as little as several weeks to as long as several months and there may be financial costs associated with the process. Requests should be directed through the Ask Us Form.
This collection was processed by Dina Britain on May 22, 2006. Finding aid written by Dina Britain on May 23, 2006. Folder inventory added by James Clark '14 in 2012.
No appraisal information is available.
Organization
- Publisher
- Manuscripts Division
- Finding Aid Date
- 2006
- Access Restrictions
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The collection is open for research.
- Use Restrictions
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Single copies may be made for research purposes. To cite or publish quotations that fall within Fair Use, as defined under U. S. Copyright Law, no permission is required. For instances beyond Fair Use, it is the responsibility of the researcher to determine whether any permissions related to copyright, privacy, publicity, or any other rights are necessary for their intended use of the Library's materials, and to obtain all required permissions from any existing rights holders, if they have not already done so. Princeton University Library's Special Collections does not charge any permission or use fees for the publication of images of materials from our collections, nor does it require researchers to obtain its permission for said use. The department does request that its collections be properly cited and images credited. More detailed information can be found on the Copyright, Credit and Citations Guidelines page on our website. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us through the Ask Us! form.
Collection Inventory
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