Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1883-11-03
Great Oaks From Little AcOrns.


The first Thursday in September, 1902,
was a great day for the district of Maine.
1t was the birthday of college. The labors
of a struggle into existence, which had lasted
for eight wears, were crowned on the sandy
plains of Brunswick by the inauguration of
the first president and the first professor of
Bowdoin College. The ceremonies took
place in the open air. and were conducted,
says the records, for the most part in Latin.
When they were over, the whole company re-
| turned to Massachusetts, Hall and partook of
a banquet there provided. The entertain
ment was given in the West room, at that
used for chapel. To grace the festivities,
the room was decorated with garlands of oak.
Four weeks later, near the last of September,
a class of eight young men, or rather boys,
was admitted. One of these was George
Thorndke. lad of thirteen, who had come
down from Beverly with President McKeen.
His father was Col. Israel Thorndike, q
staunch friend and great admirer of DIR. Me-
Keen. On the morning of the first prayers
of the term, these eight students of the col
lege were standing on the steps, and around
the door of the Hall, making OBJ
ervations on the appearance of things around
| them. Young Thorndike picked up a sol-
tary acorn, which had been swept out of the
| room of the banquet four weeks previously,
| and wondered where it came from. To pre-
serve it he dug small hole near the steps
and buried it. Here it reposed all winter.
The next spring the president who was like
father to the students, gave the class
small plot of ground to cultivate for their
own amusement. He appropriated for this
purpose the Northeastern corner of his own
garden Thorndike remembered his acorn.
He succeeded in finding it, dug it up, and
found that it had lived and burst its shell.
He transplanted it to the Northern portion of
the students plot, and carefully looked after
it while he in college. The slender
shoot continued to grow and flourish. 1t was
| cared for by the president, by his successor,
President Appleton, and by DIR. Allen, till it
became great tree, and got beyond the need
of care.
Young Thorndike died, four years after
leaving college, in st. Petersburg. The fact
| that of Bowdoin's graduates George Thorn
dixie was the first to wear the fatal star, adds
| a side of peculiar pathos to the story. He
seemed to feel that he was not destined to
live to make his mark in the world when he
so tenderly nourished tree that was to bear
his name down to future generations.
What changes this old oak has seen! When
first it pushed its slender stem from beneath
the sandy soil of Brunswick, the campus was
blueberry plain one quarter its present size.
| The presidents, professors and students made
one family, all living together in Massachu-
setts Hall. This, the only building of the
college, served for the presidents house,
chapel, recitation rooms and domitories. The
location of the presidents kitchen is easily
recognized to this day by the old fashioned
fireplace in the Cleveland lecture room. The
students were summoned to prayers by the
rapping of the presidents cane on the stairs.
heavy rapping called to prayer, and light
er one to recitations.
And thus it appears that the college oak
grew from an acorn dropped from the oaken
garlands used to decosate the dining hall on
the day on which the college sprang into ex-
istence. 1t has grown up aide by side with
the college; and 50 long as it shall stand it
will mark the exact age which the college has
| reached.