Seventy Years Of The Worcester Polytechnic Institute: Page 5

his alma mater, and was later an overseer of Harvard College. At this time he was in his sixty-fifth year.

Dr. Sweetser and Governor Washburn began immediately to formulate the plan for a school. As the former remarked at the inauguration exercises, "The subject was submitted to us in a very indefinite form, the only direction given being that the money should be devoted to the promotion of education in the County of Worcester. The leading idea communicated to us was that the donor wished to make the avails of his industry a permanent means of aiding the young in obtaining advantages and privileges in preparing for active life, which had been beyond his reach. "

The original design was laid before President Hill of Harvard College by Washburn, and he and Sweetser interviewed Joseph White, secretary of the Board of Education. The final draft of what was to be John Boynton's letter of gift was written by Seth Sweetser, and submitted to Whitcomb and Washburn early in March, 1865. Washburn made a few pencil suggestions, but wrote that they were of little consequence, "since all you want is to have the donor approve or disapprove of its several parts. . . It is perfectly intelligible as it is."

During the formulation of the plan there had also been drawn into consultation by its authors a young Worcester lawyer named George Frisbie Hoar. He had sat in the Massachusetts Legislature at the age of twenty-five, and was now a member of the State Senate. Perhaps few beyond the circle of his most enthusiastic friends could have visualized then the eminence that he would eventually attain. His zeal and intelligence were also to have a profound effect upon the progress of this new school.

There were veiled hints in the correspondence between Washburn and Sweertser that they knew the identity of the donor, but there is also evidence that he was not consulted. One provision written into the plan was that the institution should be "located in the city of Worcester, provided the

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Last Modified: Fri Jul 30 11:15:25 EDT 1999