John Franklin Goucher (1845-1922)

John Goucher was born on June 7, 1845 in Waynesboro, Pennsylvania to Dr. John and Eleanor Townsend Goucher. He was raised in Pittsburgh, and attended local schools before entering Dickinson College. While at Dickinson, Goucher was a member of the Sigma Chi fraternity. He attained his bachelor’s degree in 1868.

After graduation, Goucher turned down several opportunities to enter the business world, opting instead to pursue a career in the ministry. He served as a circuit preacher for the Methodist Episcopal Church, Baltimore Conference, before receiving his own church in Baltimore. Goucher married Mary Cecilia Fisher on December 24, 1877. They divided their time between the Baltimore Conference and traveling the world to establish missionary schools in China, Japan, Korea, and India.

In 1888, Goucher provided generous financial support for the establishment of a Women’s College in Baltimore. From 1890 to 1908, he served as the second president of that college. When the trustees of the college reorganized in 1910, they chose to name the institution Goucher College. John Franklin Goucher died on July 19, 1922 at Pikesville, Maryland.