Samuel Davies (Presbyterian Educator) - President of Princeton

President of Princeton

At the same time that Davies was starting his ministry in Virginia, six students began their studies in Elizabeth, N.J., at the College of New Jersey, which had been established in 1746 to educate "those of every Religious Denomination." In 1753 the trustees of the college persuaded Davies, whose work in Virginia had been favorably noted, to go to Great Britain to raise money for the fledgling school. The journey was at times harrowing, but Davies confided to his diary that "To be instrumental of laying a foundation of extensive benefit to mankind, not only in the present but in future generations, is a most animating prospect." In the end, Davies and a fellow Presbyterian minister, Gilbert Tennent, spent eleven months in Great Britain, with Davies preaching sixty times during their stay. Davies and Tennent were able to raise substantial support, mainly through church collections, enough to build Nassau Hall as the first permanent building on the new campus in Princeton. One significant donor was the grandson of Oliver Cromwell, who gave three guineas to support their efforts. Davies and Tennent eventually raised a total of four thousand pounds on behalf of the College of New Jersey.

After his return from Great Britain, Davies's prominence in Virginia grew during the French and Indian War as he implored men to do their part "to secure the inestimable blessings of liberty." Governor Dinwiddie declared Davies to be the colony's best recruiter.

In 1759, four years after he had returned from his trip to Great Britain on behalf of the College of New Jersey, the trustees of the college called on Davies again – this time to become the school's fourth president. Davies initially declined the position, thinking that one of the trustees, Samuel Finley, was better qualified. The board of trustees eventually persuaded Davies to take the job, and he succeeded Jonathan Edwards, who died just six weeks after his inauguration. Davies's own term as president was also cut short when he died in 1761 at the age of 37. Finley succeeded Davies as the school's president, and he was buried alongside his predecessor in Princeton Cemetery.