Eli Todd Tappan
Encyclopedia
Eli Todd Tappan was an American
educator, mathematician, author, lawyer and newspaper editor who served as president of Kenyon College
, among other public distinctions. He was the son of Senator
Benjamin Tappan
and the father of author Mary Tappan Wright
.
, Ohio
, the son of Benjamin Tappan
and his second wife Betsy (Lord) Tappan. His education was received in local public schools, through private tutors, and at St. Mary's College in Baltimore, Maryland
. Afterwards he studied law with his father and Edwin M. Stanton
, who was his father's partner, and in 1846 he was admitted to the bar. He married, February 4, 1851, Lydia McDowell of Steubenville. The couple had two children, Mary
and Charles. He died October 23, 1888.
, Ohio
, a weekly newspaper he founded. He went on to practice law in Steubenville, during which time he served as mayor (1852). He began his career in education in 1857 as a teacher in the public schools and quickly rose to distinction, serving as superintendent, March 1858-June 1859, professor of mathematics at Ohio University
, 1859–1860 and 1865–1868, teacher of mathematics at Mount Auburn Young Ladies' Institute, 1860–1865, and president of Kenyon College
, 1869-1875. As president he thoroughly revised the curriculum and oversaw completion of the college chapel, the Church of the Holy Spirit. Following his term as president he was Kenyon's professor of mathematics and political economy.
In addition to his administrative and professorial duties, Tappan served as a member of the Ohio State Board of School Examiners in 1864, president of the Ohio State Teachers Association in 1866, and a member of the National Education Association
, in which body he also served on the council in 1880, as treasurer from 1880–1881, and as president in 1883. He was Ohio's Commissioner of Common Schools from 1887 until his death.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
educator, mathematician, author, lawyer and newspaper editor who served as president of Kenyon College
Kenyon College
Kenyon College is a private liberal arts college in Gambier, Ohio, founded in 1824 by Bishop Philander Chase of The Episcopal Church, in parallel with the Bexley Hall seminary. It is the oldest private college in Ohio...
, among other public distinctions. He was the son of Senator
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
Benjamin Tappan
Benjamin Tappan
Benjamin Tappan was an Ohio judge and Democratic politician who served in the Ohio State Senate and the United States Senate...
and the father of author Mary Tappan Wright
Mary Tappan Wright
Mary Tappan Wright was an American novelist and short story writer best known for her acute characterizations and depictions of academic life...
.
Family, life and education
Tappan was born April 30, 1824 in SteubenvilleSteubenville, Ohio
Steubenville is a city located along the Ohio River in Jefferson County, Ohio on the Ohio-West Virginia border in the United States. It is the political county seat of Jefferson County. It is also a principal city of the Weirton–Steubenville, WV-OH Metropolitan Statistical Area...
, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, the son of Benjamin Tappan
Benjamin Tappan
Benjamin Tappan was an Ohio judge and Democratic politician who served in the Ohio State Senate and the United States Senate...
and his second wife Betsy (Lord) Tappan. His education was received in local public schools, through private tutors, and at St. Mary's College in Baltimore, Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
. Afterwards he studied law with his father and Edwin M. Stanton
Edwin M. Stanton
Edwin McMasters Stanton was an American lawyer and politician who served as Secretary of War under the Lincoln Administration during the American Civil War from 1862–1865...
, who was his father's partner, and in 1846 he was admitted to the bar. He married, February 4, 1851, Lydia McDowell of Steubenville. The couple had two children, Mary
Mary Tappan Wright
Mary Tappan Wright was an American novelist and short story writer best known for her acute characterizations and depictions of academic life...
and Charles. He died October 23, 1888.
Career
From 1846 to 1848 Tappan edited the Ohio Press in ColumbusColumbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, a weekly newspaper he founded. He went on to practice law in Steubenville, during which time he served as mayor (1852). He began his career in education in 1857 as a teacher in the public schools and quickly rose to distinction, serving as superintendent, March 1858-June 1859, professor of mathematics at Ohio University
Ohio University
Ohio University is a public university located in the Midwestern United States in Athens, Ohio, situated on an campus...
, 1859–1860 and 1865–1868, teacher of mathematics at Mount Auburn Young Ladies' Institute, 1860–1865, and president of Kenyon College
Kenyon College
Kenyon College is a private liberal arts college in Gambier, Ohio, founded in 1824 by Bishop Philander Chase of The Episcopal Church, in parallel with the Bexley Hall seminary. It is the oldest private college in Ohio...
, 1869-1875. As president he thoroughly revised the curriculum and oversaw completion of the college chapel, the Church of the Holy Spirit. Following his term as president he was Kenyon's professor of mathematics and political economy.
In addition to his administrative and professorial duties, Tappan served as a member of the Ohio State Board of School Examiners in 1864, president of the Ohio State Teachers Association in 1866, and a member of the National Education Association
National Education Association
The National Education Association is the largest professional organization and largest labor union in the United States, representing public school teachers and other support personnel, faculty and staffers at colleges and universities, retired educators, and college students preparing to become...
, in which body he also served on the council in 1880, as treasurer from 1880–1881, and as president in 1883. He was Ohio's Commissioner of Common Schools from 1887 until his death.
Works
Tappan was the author of a number of mathematical textbooks, including Treatise on Plane and Solid Geometry (1964), Treatise on geometry and trigonometry (1868), Notes and Exercises on Surveying (1878), and Elements of Geometry (1884). Other works include "Inaugural address of Eli T. Tappan, President of the Ohio Teachers' Association," at Zanesville (1866), "School Legislation," a history of the subject in Ohio through 1873, published as part of A History of Education in the State of Ohio (1876), and "On the Complexity of Causes," an address before the Department of Higher Instruction of the National Educational Association at Chautauqua (1880).Papers
Tappan's papers can be found in various archival collections, including the Eli T. Tappan family papers, the Benjamin Tappan papers, and the records of the Steubenville Coal and Mining Company, all held at the Ohio Historical Society, and the Charles William Eliot papers in the Clifton Waller Barrett Library, at the University of Virginia Library, Charlottesville, Va.General references
- Minnich, Harvey C. "Eli Todd Tappan" in Dictionary of American Biography, v. 18. Steward-Trowbridge. New York: Scribner, 1928+.
- Tappan, Daniel Langdon. Tappan-Toppan Genealogy. Arlington, Mass., 1915, pp. 25, 29-30.