Charles Mills Gayley

Charles Mills Gayley
Charles Mills Gayley c. 1890s
Born	(1858-02-22)February 22, 1858 Shanghai, China
Died	July 25, 1932(1932-07-25) (aged 74) Berkeley, California
Residence	2328 Piedmont Avenue, Berkeley, California, USA
Nationality	Scots-Irish, American
Citizenship	American
Education	Blackheath, Royal Belfast Academical Institution, Belfast
Alma mater	University of Michigan
Occupation	Professor and Dean
Years active	1887-1923
Employer	University of California
Known for	English scholar
Home town	Hollymount, Ireland
Title	Professor Emeritus of the English Language and Literature and Deputy Governor-General of Society of Mayflower Descendants
Board member of	American University Union in Europe
Spouse(s)	Sallie Pickett Gayley
Awards	Chevalier of the Legion of Honour

Charles Mills Gayley (February 22, 1858 – July 25, 1932) was a professor of English, the Classics, and Academic Dean of the University of California at Berkeley between the fall of 1889 and July 1932.

Gayley was born in Shanghai to Irish-born American Presbyterian missionaries. In 1862, Charles' father (Rev. Samuel Rankin Gayley) contracted cholera and died. Young Gayley's father was only 34 when he was buried on a hill overlooking the Straits of Pe-chi-li, China. Gayley soon moved to Ireland with his mother, Sarah, where he was educated at Blackheath school and the Royal Belfast Academical Institution. Charles' stepfather, Rev. Andrew Brown, was pastor of the Presbyterian church at Hollymount, Ireland. Gayley earned his Doctorate at the University of Michigan and briefly served there as an Assistant Professor of English and Latin. While at Michigan, Gayley: (a) composed the Michigan college songs, The Yellow and Blue and Laudes atque Carmina; (b) developed a love of Shakespeare and poetry; (c) studied one year abroad at the University of Giessen, Hesse-Darmstadt, Germany (focusing on German, medieval European history, and Modern French History); and (c) accepted his call (within ten minutes of receiving it) to teach in California.

At Berkeley, Gayley was an author, scholar, orator, and widely acclaimed literary critic. He served as University Examiner, Head of the English Department, Dean of Faculties, visiting professor at Oxford, and was a Director of the Commercial Bank of Berkeley. Occasionally, Gayley's lectures were moved to the outdoor Greek theatre to accommodate overflow students and guests. A tireless advocate of education and idea-sharing, Gayley was instrumental in the development of the University Extension, the College of Commerce, building the Senior Hall, the Stephens Union (on the model of the Oxford Union), bringing Psi Upsilon to Berkeley, and establishing the student volunteers' Ambulance Corps. In 1895, Dr. Gayley penned the famous song Golden Bear which begins, "Oh, have you seen the heavens blue, heavens blue", to commemorate the victorious return of the first track team sent east by the University. The song contributed to the selection of the 'golden bear' as the mascot of athletic teams. A staunch patriot, Gayley was also considered a chief war leader at the University, and the west in general, during World War I.