How, Samuel Blanchard

The papers of the Board of Trustees of Dickinson College, 1783-1833, include correspondence, reports, financial statements, printed materials, and legal documents, and have been arranged into seven series.

Series 1 – Membership contains correspondence regarding membership on the Board of Trustees, as well as a membership list, c1826.
Series 2 – Reports of the President consists of reports made to the Board by Presidents Nisbet, Davidson, and How.
Series 3 – General Business contains materials such as correspondence between trustees, mandamus to the faculty, and committee reports.
Series 4 – College Personnel includes correspondence to and from faculty members, including presidents.
Series 5 – Physical Plant contains land deeds and construction and service bills for the campus buildings.
Series 6 – Financial Affairs contains reports of the treasurer, subscription lists, and other financial materials.
Series 7– Publications contains printed materials such as college catalogues.

A fuller description of each series is given before each series inventory.

The Presidents 1783-1833 Record Group contains papers related the presidency of the seven men who served at Dickinson from 1783 to 1833. This Record Group corresponds with that of RG 1/1, the Trustees 1783-1833, which also documents the first fifty years of the college. The materials in this record group pertain to the president’s duties in the administration of his office; any papers relating to his employment such as letters of acceptance or resignation and vouchers for salary are housed in RG 1/1. In addition, personal papers of the presidents have been removed to individual collections where applicable. The majority of the papers in this record group are correspondence with individual trustees regarding college business; also included are reports and resolutions from the faculty, as well as drafts of publications dealing with the curriculum. 

Below is a timeline of the presidents of Dickinson College from 1783 to 1833.

1785 – Charles Nisbet
1785-1786 – Robert Davidson (acting)
1786-1804 – Charles Nisbet
1804-1809 – Robert Davidson
1809-1815 – Jeremiah Atwater
1815-1816 – John McKnight
1816-1821 – College closed
1821-1824 – John Mitchell Mason
1824 – Alexander McClelland (acting)
1824-1829 – William Neill
1829-1832 – Samuel Blanchard How
1832-1833 – College closed