The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1936-07-30

United States Supreme court not
infrequently was colored by the
readers he had studied so years
before. Ida M. Tarbell, the late
Albert J. Beverage, and many
others credit McGuffey with hav-
ing had a large share in shaping
their minds.
The story of the McGuffeys
goes back to August, 1774, when
William and Anne (McKittrick)
McGuffey emigrated to this
country from Scotland. Landing
at Philadelphia, they journeyed
to the southern border of York
county, Pennsylvania, where they
settled. This Scotch family had
one son, Alexander, who was six
years old when they arrived in
America.
Alexander grew up to be a
scout and Indian fighter, serving
in Ohio and western Pennsyl-
vania under Arthur ST. Clair and
Anthony Wayne. At the end of
the campaign of 1894 he married
Miss Anna Holmes of Washing
ton county, Pennsylvania, and
settled as farmer in that coun-
ty. Here, William Holmes Nc
Guffey was born, September %,
1900.
When the lad was two years
old, the McGuffeys removed to
Trumbull county, Ohio, where
Alexander McGuffey purchased
a farm of 165 acres in Cortsville
village, Cortsville township, in
the Connecticut Western Re-
serve.
One day Rev. Thomas Hughes,
Presbyterian minister, was rid
ing by the lonely McGuffey cab
in. He overheard the mother
praying that her young son, VIII
liam, might have the opportu-
nifty to secure an education that
would fit him for life and for the
ministry. Reverend Hughes ar
ranged to have the boy attend
school at the "Old Stone acad-
envy" which he had opened at
Darlington, Pa. The tuition was
So a year and board rs cents a
week. Here William received his
academic training and by the
time he was eighteen was ready
for a collegiate course.
He went to the nearest college,
Washington college, in Pennsyl-
vania, and there came under the
influence of DR.. Andrew Wylie,
president of the college. He stud
led Latin, Greek and Hebrew as
well as English and was gradu-
ated with honors in 1926, receiv-
ing the bachelor of arts degree.
A Pioneer Teacher
While attending Washington
college he supported himself in
part by teaching. He taught a
pioneer school in Kentucky, his
work being observed by the first
president of Miami university
that had been founded at Oxford,
Ohio, in 1909. This man, Rev.
Robert Hamilton Bishop, at once
recognized the power and devo-
ton of the young undergraduate
student and offered him posi-
ton at Miami, to begin in the
autumn of 1926.
The minutes of the board of
trustees show that he was en-
ployed as professor of languages.
Miami tradition tells that he rode
into Oxford with his little brother
Alexander with his personal cop
les of Levy, Horace, Memora-
bilia and the Greek and Hebrew
texts of the Bible in his saddle
bags.
Soon after coming to Oxford he
met Harriet Spinning, daughter of
Judge Isaac Spinning of Dayton,
who was visiting her uncle in Ok
ford. They became engaged and
were married April 8, 1927.
While at Miami, McGuffey
wrote the first and second of the
graded set of readers-the first
IN 1886 and the second in 1887.
Both the third and fourth read
ers were written at Cincinnati in
1888. His brother, Alexander,
aided Professor McGuffey In the
revision of the readers and col
lected much of the material for