Elisha Andrews - Academic Life

Academic Life

He served in Connecticut regiments during the Civil War. Graduating from Brown University in 1870 and from the Newton Theological Institution in 1874, he preached for one year and then was president of Denison University from 1875-79. He was professor of homiletics at Newton Theological Institution from 1879–82; professor of history and political economy at Brown University from 1882–88; professor of political economy and finance at Cornell University from 1888–89; and he served as the president of Brown University from 1889 until 1898. He resigned as president of Brown in 1897 because of criticism by trustees of his advocacy of free silver but at that time withdrew his resignation.

He was the superintendent of schools for Chicago from 1898 to 1900, and then became chancellor of the University of Nebraska in 1900. He retired from academic life as chancellor emeritus of the University of Nebraska on January 1, 1909. In 1892, he was an American commissioner to the Brussels monetary conference and was a strong supporter of international bimetallism. He became a member of the corporation of Brown University in 1900 and was made president of the Association of State Universities in 1904. Andrews died at his home in Interlachen, Florida in 1917.