All Scholars

Theodore Dwight Woolsey was one of Yale's greatest teachers of Greek before being elevated to the presidency of Yale in 1846. He was graduated as valedictorian from Yale, spent one year reading the law in Philadelphia, another two studying theology, then following a brief tutorship, during which he concluded his theological work, left to study Arabic in Paris, then Greek in Leipzig, Bonn, and Berlin. He felt that his character had sufficient flaws to disqualify him from the ministry, so he resolved during his European period to devote himself wholeheartedly to the study of Greek. Appointed the first professor of Greek language and literature at Yale in 1831, he taught a generation of students and produced a series of editions of texts for college students. Though he initially resisted the offer of the presidency because he still felt his character was inadequate to the ministry (a requirement of the office), he accepted, turning over the Greek Department to James Hadley, while he taught courses in history, political science, and international law. During his tenure as president of Yale he became a recognized authority on political science and international law. During Woolsey's quarter-century as president, the curriculum was reorganized, graduate instruction was greatly expanded, new chairs were endowed (including a second chair of Greek, held by Lewis R. Packard), and many buildings erected. Yale's reputation grew as its academic standards and the quality of its faculty were raised by Woolsey. Woolsey Hall at Yale is named in his honor. He was a founder of The Independent. He was a distant, impressive, intensely moral figure, fair in his dealings with students and faculty. From his two marriages he fathered 13 children.