Charles N. Sims
Sims c. 1893.
Sims c. 1893.
3rd Chancellor of Syracuse University
In office
April 1881 – October 1893
Preceded byErastus Otis Haven
Succeeded byJames Roscoe Day
1st President of
Valparaiso Male and Female College
In office
1860–1862
Succeeded byErastus H. Staley
Personal details
Born(1835-05-18)May 18, 1835
Fairfield, Indiana
DiedMarch 27, 1908(1908-03-27) (aged 72)
Indiana
SpouseEliza Foster
Alma materIndiana Ashbury University

Charles N. Sims (May 18, 1835 – March 27, 1908) was an American Methodist preacher and the third chancellor of Syracuse University, serving from 1881 to 1893.[1] Sims Hall and Sims drive on the Syracuse campus is named for him.[2][3]

Early life

Sims was born in Fairfield, Indiana in 1835.[4] He graduated in 1859 from Indiana Ashbury University and received a Masters of Arts degree from there in 1861. Sims served as the first president of Valparaiso Male and Female College for two years starting in 1860 before resigning to become a minister.[5] He was granted a Doctor of Divinity degree from Ashbury in 1871. In addition, he received an honorary M. A. from Ohio Wesleyan University (1860) and an honorary LL. D. from Ashbury (1882).[1]

Chancellor of Syracuse University

After serving as a minister at various institutions, such as the Summerfield Methodist Church of Brooklyn, Sims was approached to become chancellor of Syracuse University in 1881. During his tenure, Sims pushed for the university to pay off debts, establish endowments, and expand the university with new buildings.[1][6] Holden Observatory was the first building completed under Sims' building fund,[7] and Sims likewise oversaw the construction of the John Crouse Memorial College for Women (now Crouse College).[8]

In 1883, Sims led an effort to break up and allot the Onondaga Reservation through a state treaty he hoped to persuade the Onondagas to sign. Sims’s efforts to persuade the Onondagas to sign a treaty with the state individualizing their landholdings ended in failure. When the ballots were cast, Onondagas voted nearly unanimously against it.[9]

He was supportive of the Syracuse Orangemen football, who played their first game during his presidency in 1889.[10][11] He retired as chancellor in 1893.

Later life

Sims returned to Indiana following his retirement. After a few years, he moved once again to Syracuse to become minister of the First Methodist Church. He was made a trustee of the university in 1903.[6] After a final retirement, he returned to Indiana and died in 1908.

Bibliography

  • The Life of Rev. Thomas M. Eddy, D.D. New York: Phillips & Hunt. 1880.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Chancellor Charles N. Sims Collection". Syracuse University Archives. Syracuse University. Archived from the original on September 19, 2015. Retrieved October 14, 2015.
  2. ↑ "Syracuse University Buildings: Sims Hall". Syracuse University Archives. Syracuse University. Archived from the original on September 26, 2015. Retrieved October 14, 2015.
  3. ↑ Galvin, Mason & O'Brien 2013, p. 33
  4. ↑ "Dr. Charles N. Sims". The Brookville Democrat. April 9, 1908. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com. Free access icon
  5. ↑ "Charles N Sims". valpo.edu. Valparaiso University. Retrieved October 14, 2015.
  6. 1 2 Galvin, Mason & O'Brien 2013, p. 13
  7. ↑ "Syracuse University Buildings: Holden Observatory". Syracuse University Archives. Syracuse University. Archived from the original on October 26, 2015. Retrieved October 14, 2015.
  8. ↑ "Dr. Charles N. Sims". The Brookville Democrat. April 9, 1908. p. 4 – via Newspapers.com. Free access icon
  9. ↑ Oberg, Michael Leroy (April 2021). "The Way Things Matter". The Journal of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era. 20 (2): 330–332. doi:10.1017/S1537781421000153. ISSN 1537-7814.
  10. ↑ Alandt, Anthony (November 2, 2022). "The storied history of Syracuse football began well before its 1889 loss to Rochester". The Daily Orange. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  11. ↑ Robert J. Reid (October 3, 2005). A Memorable Season in College Football: A Look Back at 1959. p. 95. ISBN 9781452040332. Retrieved March 24, 2017.

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