Rowland Reynolds to Thomas Jefferson, 21 July 1819
From Rowland Reynolds
Hampton July 21st 1819
Sir
I have understood from Judge Cooper that applications are to be made to you respecting situations in the Central College. He has informed me that it is necessary to state where I have received my education and what have been my pursuits since I left College &c. This Sir, I hope will plead my excuse with you, if in this letter I am compelled to speak frequently of myself. The situation which I wish to become a Candidate for is the Classical Professorship. I left this Country at an early age and was educated in Trinity College Dublin where I received the degree of A.B. During my residence in Ireland, I was employed as Head Classical Assistant at the Revd Gilbert Austin’s Academy, which was accounted one of the first classical seminaries in Ireland. When he gave up school I lived in the College and took private pupils whom I prepared for quarterly examinations in the sciences & the classics. Since my return to the United States I have been engaged in the study of the Law at New York, where I received a license to practise. For the last eighteen months I have been employed as Principal Teacher in the Academy, at Hampton, the Trustees of which have been pleased to express their satisfaction, at the manner in which it has been conducted. I shall take the liberty of sending you a copy of the Diploma and enclosing a letter from Mr Emmet of New York (with whom I studied law) to Bishop Moore. I shall also subjoin a list of the Classical authors which are read in College, previous to entrance and during the Collegiate Course. I am sir with the greatest respect, your most obedt servt
Rowland Reynolds
A List of the Greek & Latin Authors read for Entrance
| Greek. | First eight books of Homer, Murphy’s Lucian, first three books of Xenophon’s Cyropædia, 4 Gospels & Acts, Epictetus and Tabula Cebetis. |
| Latin. | Virgil’s Eclogues & first six books of Æneid, first three plays of Terence, Horace’s Odes, Satires & Epistles, Sallust and 3, 10, 13, 14 Satires of Juvenal. |
After entrance and during the course which lasts four years a new Greek & Latin Author is read every three months.
| Hilary | Easter | Trinity | Michaelmas |
| Homer’s Iliad books 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, & 14 Virgil’s Æneid, books 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 & 12 |
Homer’s Iliad, books 15, 16, 17, 18, 19 & 20 Horace, Odes, Epodes & Carmen Seculare. |
Homer’s Iliad, books 21, 22, 23 & 24 Sallust |
Xenophon’s Memorables Terence |
| Stock’s Lucian Juvenal & Persius |
Xenophon’s Cyropædia books, 4, 5, 6, 7 & 8 Justin first 12 books |
Demosthenes 1st vol Cicero, Archias, Ligarius, Marcellus, Lex Manilia & Milo. | Demosthenes 2nd vol. Cicero, Orations against Cataline & Philippics |
| Æschines Virgil’s Georgics |
Demosthenes, de Corona. Horace. Satires Epistles and Art of Poetry. |
Sophocles, Philoctetes Livy books 1, 2, 3, & 4 |
Euripides, Hippolitus & Iphigenia in Aulis Livy books. 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 & 10— |
| Sophocles, Œdipus Tyrannus & Electra. Livy, Books 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29 & 30 |
Sophocles, Œdipus Coloneus & Antigone Livy, books, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 & 38. |
Sophocles, Trachiniæ Livy, books, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44 & 45. |
Longinus. Annals of Tacitus |
RC (ViU: TJP); on a sheet folded to form four pages, with letter on pp. 1–2, diploma on p. 3, and address on p. 4; addressed: “Thomas Jefferson Esq. Monticello”; stamped; postmarked Hampton, 24 July; endorsed by TJ as received 4 Aug. 1819 and so recorded in SJL. Enclosure: Reynolds’s B.A. diploma from Trinity College (Dublin), 7 Feb. 1816 (Tr in ViU: TJP; in Latin; entirely in Reynolds’s hand, including signatures of John Barrett, Robert Phipps, provost Thomas Elrington, Francis Hodgkinson, and Thomas Prior; copy attested 4 Jan. 1817; at head of text: “A Copy of the Diploma”). Other enclosure not found.
Rowland Reynolds (ca. 1787–1838), educator, was born in New York and graduated from Trinity College in Dublin in 1816. The following year he returned to New York City and was admitted to the bar as an attorney. Reynolds later moved to Virginia, where he was principal of the Hampton Academy before teaching at the Norfolk Academy in 1821. By 1828 he moved to Richmond, where he was principal at the Richmond Academy until 1835 and its professor of ancient languages from then until his death (George Dames Burtchaell and Thomas Ulick Sadleir, eds., Alumni Dublinenses: A Register of the Students, Graduates, Professors and Provosts of Trinity College in the University of Dublin (1593–1860) [1935], 699; New York Shamrock, 10 May 1817; Albany Gazette & Daily Advertiser, 20 Aug. 1817; American Beacon and Norfolk & Portsmouth Daily Advertiser, 16 Dec. 1820; Francis H. Smith, The Schools and Schoolmasters of Virginia In The Olden Time [1874], 13–4; Richmond Enquirer, 6 Aug. 1833, 15 Sept. 1835, 1 Feb. 1838; Richmond Compiler, 31 Jan. 1838; gravestone inscription in Shockoe Hill Cemetery, Richmond).
hilary, easter, trinity, and michaelmas: the names of terms, or sessions, of certain British courts and universities ().
Index Entries
- Aeneid (Virgil) search
- Aeschines; works of search
- Annals (Tacitus) search
- Ars Poetica (Horace) search
- Austin, Gilbert search
- Barrett, John search
- Bible; Acts referenced search
- Bible; Greek language search
- books; classical search
- Carmen Saeculare (Horace) search
- Cicero; orations of search
- classics; collegiate education in search
- Cooper, Thomas (1759–1839); mentioned search
- Cyropaedia (Xenophon) search
- Demosthenes; in collegiate curriculum search
- Demosthenes; On the Crown search
- Eclogues (Virgil) search
- education; classical search
- Elrington, Thomas search
- Emmet, Thomas Addis; reference for R. Reynolds search
- Epictetus (Greek philosopher); works of search
- Epistles (Horace) search
- Epodes (Horace) search
- Euripides; Hippolytus search
- Euripides; Iphigenia at Aulis search
- Georgics (Virgil) search
- Greek language; classical works written in search
- Hampton Academy search
- Hodgkinson, Francis search
- Homer; Iliad search
- Horace; Ars Poetica search
- Horace; Carmen Saeculare search
- Horace; Epistles search
- Horace; Epodes search
- Horace; Odes search
- Horace; Satires search
- Iliad (Homer); in collegiate education search
- Jefferson, Thomas; Correspondence; letters of application and recommendation to search
- Justinus, Marcus Junianus; works of search
- Juvenal; works of search
- Latin language; collegiate education in search
- law; study of search
- Livy; in collegiate curriculum search
- Lucian; dialogues of, E. Murphy edition of search
- Lucian; Selecti ex Luciano Dialogi Quidam (ed. J. Stock) search
- Memorabilia (Xenophon) search
- Moore, Richard Channing; mentioned search
- Murphy, Edward; edits Lucian’s dialogues search
- Odes (Horace) search
- On the Crown (Demosthenes) search
- On the Sublime (“Longinus”) search
- patronage; letters of application and recommendation to TJ search
- Persius Flaccus, Aulus; in collegiate curriculum search
- Phipps, Robert search
- Prior, Thomas search
- Reynolds, Rowland; and Trinity College (Dublin) search
- Reynolds, Rowland; identified search
- Reynolds, Rowland; letter from search
- Reynolds, Rowland; seeks position at University of Virginia search
- Sallust (Gaius Sallustius Crispus); works of search
- Satires (Horace) search
- schools and colleges; Hampton Academy search
- schools and colleges; Trinity College (Dublin) search
- Selecti ex Luciano Dialogi Quidam (Lucian; ed. J. Stock) search
- Sophocles; Antigone search
- Sophocles; Electra search
- Sophocles; Oedipus at Colonus search
- Sophocles; Oedipus Tyrannus search
- Sophocles; Philoctetes search
- Sophocles; Trachiniae search
- Stock, Joseph; editsSelecti ex Luciano Dialogi Quidam (Lucian) search
- Tabula Cebetis search
- Tacitus, Cornelius; Annals search
- Terence (Publius Terentius Afer) search
- Trinity College (Dublin) search
- Virgil (Publius Vergilius Maro); Aeneid search
- Virgil (Publius Vergilius Maro); Eclogues search
- Virgil (Publius Vergilius Maro); Georgics search
- Virginia, University of; Faculty and Curriculum; classics professorship search
- Virginia, University of; Faculty and Curriculum; faculty applicants search
- Xenophon; Cyropaedia search
- Xenophon; Memorabilia search
- “Longinus” (Greek critic); On the Sublime search