Isaac Goodnow
| Isaac Goodnow | |
|---|---|
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| Born |
January 17, 1814 Whitingham, Vermont |
| Died | March 20, 1894 (aged 80) Manhattan, Kansas |
Isaac Tichenor Goodnow (January 17, 1814 – March 20, 1894) was an abolitionist and co-founder of Kansas State University and Manhattan, Kansas. Goodnow was also elected as a Republican to the Kansas House of Representatives and as Superintendent of Public Instruction for the state, and is known as "the father of formal education in Kansas."
Goodnow was born in Whitingham, Vermont, and raised in New England. After the death of his father in 1828, Goodnow delayed his education and worked as a clerk. He eventually graduated from Wilbraham Wesleyan Academy in Wilbraham, Massachusetts in 1838. Also in 1838, Goodnow married Ellen D. Denison. Following graduation, Goodnow remained at Wesleyan Academy as a teacher until 1848. During this era, Goodnow was also awarded an honorary degree by Wesleyan University in 1845.
In 1848 Goodnow accepted a position as professor of natural sciences at the Providence Conference Seminary in East Greenwich, Rhode Island. He retained this position until December 1854, when he resigned at age 40 to move to Kansas Territory to support the creation of a Free-State town by the New England Emigrant Aid Company.
Goodnow had been a committed abolitionist since at least 1840. After hearing a speech given by New England Emigrant Aid Company founder Eli Thayer in December 1854 about the need to fight against the proslavery influence in Kansas Territory, Goodnow decided that he would emigrate to Kansas Territory with the Company the following spring. Thereafter, he also began writing editorials and letters encouraging others to join the cause.
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