John D. Whitney

The Reverend John D. Whitney SJ
Whitney in 1906
32ndPresident of Georgetown University
In office 1898–1901
Preceded by	J. Havens Richards
Succeeded by	Jerome Daugherty
Personal details
Born	(1850-07-19)July 19, 1850 Nantucket, Massachusetts,US
Died	November 27, 1917(1917-11-27)(aged 67) Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts,US
Resting place	College of the Holy CrossCemetery
Alma mater	Stonyhurst College Milltown Park Woodstock College
Military service
Branch	United States Navy
Years	1866–1872
Orders
Ordination	August 15, 1885

John Dunning WhitneySJ(July 19, 1850 – November 27, 1917) was an AmericanCatholicpriest andJesuitwho became the president ofGeorgetown Universityin 1898. Born inMassachusetts,he joined theUnited States Navyat the age of sixteen, where he was introduced to Catholicism by way of a book that accidentally came into his possession and prompted him to become a Catholic. He entered theSociety of Jesusand spent the next twenty-five years studying and teachingmathematicsat Jesuit institutions around the world, including in Canada, England, Ireland, and around the United States inNew York,Maryland,Boston,andLouisiana.He became the vice president ofSpring Hill CollegeinAlabamabefore being appointed thepresident of Georgetown University.

During his three-year tenure, a number of improvements were made to the campus, including the completion ofGaston Halland the construction of the entrances toHealy Hall.TheGeorgetown University Hospitaland what would become theSchool of Dentistrywere also established. After the end of his term, he went toBoston Collegefor several years astreasurerbefore doing pastoral work inPhiladelphia,Brooklyn,andBaltimore,where he became theprefectofSt. Ignatius Church.He continued to spend time at Boston College, where he died in 1917.

Early life

John Dunning Whitney was born on July 19, 1850, inNantucket, Massachusetts.Descending from a prominent family,his father was Thomas G. Whitney and his mother was Esther A. WhitneynéeDunning.Esther was a devoutCongregationalistand John was raised in that faith.He was sent to several public and private schools,includingNantucket High School,before entering theUnited States Navyin 1866. While serving as alieutenantaboard theschoolshipUSSMercury,he had areligious conversionexperience.

Conversion to Catholicism

Aboard theMercury,he would often discuss religion with a shipmate, who argued that none of theProtestantchurches were theone true church,and that either theChurch of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saintsor theCatholic Churchwas the true church.Whitney was also able to compare the different practices of the Protestant and Catholicchaplainsaboard the ship.His conversations with his shipmate convinced Whitney to consider "the claims of the Catholic church".In August 1870, theMercurywas inNewport, Rhode Island,to attend theAmerica's Cup.Thecaptaininvited a newlywed Catholic couple aboard to return toNew York Cityfrom the yacht races.While sailing through theLong Island Sound,the bride dropped a book overboard, and theexecutive officerhad adinghylowered into the water to retrieve it. After disembarking in New York, the bride left the book behind,which Whitney discovered to beThe Invitation Heeded: Reasons for a Return to Catholic UnitybyJames Kent Stone,who later became aPassionistpriest known as Father Fidelis; the book was written in response toPope Pius IX's call for allChristiansto return to theMother Church.

Having read the book repeatedly, he approached one of the ship's chaplains, Dominic Duranquet, aJesuit,and declared that if its contents were true, then he must become a Catholic.After being instructed to pray and study further, he requested to be received into the Catholic Church, with Stone as hisgodfather.On November 2, 1870 (All Souls' Day), Whitney wasconditionally baptizedby Duranquet in theChurch of St. Paul the Apostlein New York City.

Education and teaching

Whitney entered the Society of Jesus on August 14, 1872, in theSault-au-Récolletneighborhood ofMontreal,Canada, where he remained for two years. He went toManresa Housein theRoehamptondistrict ofLondon,England,in 1875 to studyrhetoricfor a year, and then toStonyhurst CollegeinLancashirefor three years to studyphilosophy.He taughtmathematicsfor a year before returning to the United States in 1880, where he continued to teach mathematics atSt. Francis Xavier Collegein New York City for four years.

In 1884, he went toWoodstock CollegeinMarylandto studytheology.The following year, he was sent toMobile, Alabama,where he wasordainedaprieston August 15, 1885.He began teaching mathematics in 1886 atSpring Hill College,and eventually became vice president of the school. After four years at Spring Hill College, he went to Ireland in 1890, where he studied theology atMilltown ParkinDublin,before returning to Roehampton for histertianshipin 1892.

Whitney then returned to the United States, and began teaching mathematics atSt. Charles CollegeinGrand Coteau, Louisiana,from 1893 to 1895. He was transferred to theCollege of the Immaculate ConceptioninNew Orleansin 1897, and then to St. John's College inThe Bronx,later known asFordham University.

Georgetown University

Gaston Hallshortly after completion

Whitney was appointedpresident of Georgetown Universityon July 3, 1898,succeedingJ. Havens Richards.During his presidency, a number of improvements to the campus were made. TheGeorgetown University Hospitalwas opened and the first patient was accepted.Gaston Hallwas decorated and completed in 1901.That year, the university also received a donation from Anthony A. Hirst, a wealthy resident ofPhiladelphiaand alumnus ofGeorgetown CollegeandLaw School,to construct Hirst Library insideHealy Hall.The main and center entrances to Healy Hall were completed, walkways were paved, and several campus buildings were renovated, includingDahlgren Chapel.

In 1901, Whitney convinced the faculty of the School of Medicine to reconsider the proposal of a local dentist, W. Warrington Evans, to absorb his Washington Dental College as a department of the medical school,a proposal he had been tendering to the university since 1870.The medical faculty accepted the arrangement in May 1901, and the Washington Dental College became a department in late July.It would eventually become the university'sSchool of Dentistry.

On May 14, 1901, the university hosted ArchbishopSebastiano Martinelli,theApostolic Delegate to the United States,upon his elevation to theCollege of Cardinals.The grand reception in Healy Hall was attended by the students and faculty in theiracademic regalia,as well as many dignitaries, including the Secretary of WarElihu Root,all the justices of theSupreme Court of the United States,all the justices of the federalDistrict of Columbia Court of Appeals(later renamed to acircuit court), most of the foreignambassadors to the United States,manymilitary and navalcommanders, and the faculties of other local universities.While Whitney was popular with the students, the Jesuitprovincial superiordecided not to renew his term as president, believing he had placed too much emphasis onathleticsand was spendthrifty.Whitney's tenure as president came to an end on July 11, 1901,and he was succeeded byJerome Daugherty.

Later years

Following the end of his presidency at Georgetown, Whitney became thetreasurerofBoston Collegein 1902 and held this post until 1907.While inMassachusetts,he also worked closely with theSisters of the Good Shepherd,a femalereligious order.He then leftBostonto take up ministry atSt. Joseph's Churchin Philadelphia, before becoming theprefectofSt. Ignatius ChurchinBaltimorein August 1909. He succeededFrancis X. Brady,who left to become president ofLoyola College in Maryland,and Whitney was stationed at St. Ignatius for the remainder of his life.

While at St. Ignatius, he directed thesodalityof St. Ignatius Church, which administered theW. G. Read MullanScholarship.He spent the year of 1912 inBrooklyn,away from his parish.In May 1916, his health began to deteriorate,and he spent part of 1917 at Boston College inChestnut Hill, Massachusetts,where he died on November 27 of that year.His funeral was held in the Church of the Immaculate Conception in Boston and he was buried at theCollege of the Holy CrossinWorcester, Massachusetts.

References

Sources

• Easby-Smith, James Stanislaus (1907).Georgetown University in the District of Columbia, 1789–1907: Its Founders, Benefactors, Officers, Instructors and Alumni.New York: Lewis Publishing Company. pp. 211–226.OCLC633425041.RetrievedSeptember 13,2019– viaInternet Archive.
• Catalogue of Loyola College, Baltimore.Baltimore: John Murphy Company. 1900.Archivedfrom the original on September 16, 2019.RetrievedSeptember 16,2019– viaGoogle Books.
• Curran, Robert Emmett (2010).A History of Georgetown University: The Quest for Excellence, 1889–1964.Vol. 2. Washington, D.C.:Georgetown University Press.ISBN978-1-58901-689-7.
• Delany, Joseph F.; Farrelly, Stephen; Meehan, Thomas F., eds. (December 1917)."Necrology: Rev. John Dunning Whitney, S. J."Historical Records and Studies.XI:129–130.Archivedfrom the original on September 13, 2019.RetrievedSeptember 13,2019– viaGoogle Books.
• George, Hardy (October 1972). "Georgetown University's Healy Hall".Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians.31(3): 208–216.doi:10.2307/988766.JSTOR988766.
• "Obituary: Father John Dunning Whitney".Woodstock Letters.47(1): 88–93. February 1, 1918.Archivedfrom the original on September 13, 2019.RetrievedSeptember 13,2019– via Jesuit Online Library.