Alonzo A. Miner
President, 1862 - 1875
“A liberal education is the best investment, financially considered, that the passing generation can make for the next.”
– Alonzo Miner, inaugural speech, July 9, 1862
After the death of President Ballou, students petitioned for Reverend Alonzo Ames Miner, the College Treasurer, to advance to the College’s highest office. Soon the Trustees and Reverend Miner came to an agreement – he would become Tufts’ second president and its first Professor of Moral Philosophy and Political Economy, yet remain installed in his Boston parish, forgoing his College salary for the first three years and balancing his responsibilities to his congregation and to the College.
For thirteen years, President Miner served in both positions, yet by 1874, change was in the air. Students responded to the possibility of the president’s resignation with a Resolution, recognizing his “eminent ability” and the “advancement the College has made during the years of his administration,” and asserting that “in the interests of higher education, by no means of insignificant importance to the denomination, can be better promoted by the continuation of his present relations with the College.” However, in December 1874, President Miner tendered his resignation as of February 1875, to devote himself fulltime to his congregation.
Though his work in the classroom had a lasting impact on his students, President Miner’s legacy lies in putting the College on firm financial footing, securing funds from the state, private donors, and the denomination – including substantial support from his parish in Boston. Students directly benefitted from this work, too, with an increase in scholarships and the establishment of on campus student employment.