Henry Ruffner
Encyclopedia
Henry Ruffner was an educator and Presbyterian minister, who served as president of Washington College (now Washington and Lee University
).
and Virginia Military Institute Professor Francis Henney Smith
. Though Ruffner was quite critical of "abolitionists," he argued against slavery on economic grounds and was criticized occasionally be proslavery politicians in Virginia in the decade before the war. This moderate anti-slavery position seems to have represented something of a change because he had published a novella in 1839, Judith Bensaddi whose title character argued against abolition of slavery.
During his presidency, such speakers as Princeton educator Archibald Alexander
(himself a graduate of Liberty Hall, the predecessor of Washington College), Minister Elias Lyman Magoon
, and Professor George Dabney
delivered graduation addresses at Washington College.
Ruffner's views brought him into conflict with some members of the College and Lexington community, where relations were already strained because of conflicts between the missions of Washington College and the Virginia Military Institute and because of sectarian disputes. Ruffner tendered his resignation as president in 1848. He was replaced by George Junkin
, then president of LaFayette College, who had lost his job at Miami University in Ohio a few years early for his pro-slavery views.
Ruffner spent some time teaching at the University of Virginia in 1850 and 1851; he visited Louisville, Kentucky, where he continued his anti-slavery advocacy. He is purported to be the author of a brief attack published around 1849 on Ellwood Fisher's proslavery pamphlet, Lecture on the North and South, though the attribution is questionable. His other work includes The Father of the Desert, published in 1850. Ruffner then returned to Kanawha; he delivered a pro-Union speech in on July 4, 1856.
Ruffner died shortly after the Civil War began.
Washington and Lee University
Washington and Lee University is a private liberal arts college in Lexington, Virginia, United States.The classical school from which Washington and Lee descended was established in 1749 as Augusta Academy, about north of its present location. In 1776 it was renamed Liberty Hall in a burst of...
).
Biography
Ruffner was educated at Washington College in Lexington, Virginia; he graduated in 1813, then he studied for the Presbyterian ministry. While at Washington College, Ruffner was a student of Professor William Graham, who had graduated from Princeton in 1773. In 1819 he returned to Washington College as a professor of ancient languages. In 1837 he became president and delivered an inaugural address that emphasized such classic themes as self-control and the importance of education in guiding American society. In 1847 he published an anti-slavery pamphlet, Address to the People of West Virginia; showing the Slavery is Injurious to the Public Welfare, (that became known as the "Ruffner pamphlet"). The pamphlet grew out of a debate that Ruffner had before Lexington's Franklin Society over slavery with Lexington Law School Professor John White BrockenbroughJohn White Brockenbrough
John White Brockenbrough was a Virginia lawyer, federal judge, educator, and the founder of the Washington and Lee University School of Law....
and Virginia Military Institute Professor Francis Henney Smith
Francis Henney Smith
Francis Henney Smith was a United States Military Academy graduate, United States Army second lieutenant, college professor, including teacher at West Point, Confederate Army colonel, Virginia Militia general, first superintendent of Virginia Military Institute and its rebuilder after the American...
. Though Ruffner was quite critical of "abolitionists," he argued against slavery on economic grounds and was criticized occasionally be proslavery politicians in Virginia in the decade before the war. This moderate anti-slavery position seems to have represented something of a change because he had published a novella in 1839, Judith Bensaddi whose title character argued against abolition of slavery.
During his presidency, such speakers as Princeton educator Archibald Alexander
Archibald Alexander
Archibald Alexander was an American Presbyterian theologian and professor at the Princeton Theological Seminary...
(himself a graduate of Liberty Hall, the predecessor of Washington College), Minister Elias Lyman Magoon
Elias Lyman Magoon
Elias Lyman Magoon was an American clergyman and religious writer.Magoon was born in Lebanon, New Hampshire, the son of Elder Josiah Magoon of New Hampton, and brother of Martin L. Magoon, who died at Medford, Mass., in 1831, and of Capt. John C. Magoon of Medford. He one of the most...
, and Professor George Dabney
George Dabney
George Dabney was an educator and scholar of classics, who served on the faculty of Washington College from 1837 to 1854.-Biography:...
delivered graduation addresses at Washington College.
Ruffner's views brought him into conflict with some members of the College and Lexington community, where relations were already strained because of conflicts between the missions of Washington College and the Virginia Military Institute and because of sectarian disputes. Ruffner tendered his resignation as president in 1848. He was replaced by George Junkin
George Junkin
Rev. George Junkin, D. D., LL. D. was an American educator and Presbyterian minister who served as the first president of Lafayette College and later as president of Miami University and Washington College .-Biography:He was the son of Joseph Junkin, and the sixth of fourteen children born in...
, then president of LaFayette College, who had lost his job at Miami University in Ohio a few years early for his pro-slavery views.
Ruffner spent some time teaching at the University of Virginia in 1850 and 1851; he visited Louisville, Kentucky, where he continued his anti-slavery advocacy. He is purported to be the author of a brief attack published around 1849 on Ellwood Fisher's proslavery pamphlet, Lecture on the North and South, though the attribution is questionable. His other work includes The Father of the Desert, published in 1850. Ruffner then returned to Kanawha; he delivered a pro-Union speech in on July 4, 1856.
Ruffner died shortly after the Civil War began.