Wakeman W. Edwards

"About the year 1846 I began to think there was something better in store for me than a mere farmer’s boy. We could make but little money and I wanted something better, so I proposed to father to go to Schenectady and learn the machinist’s business, as there were several machine shops there and a locomotive factory, “The Norris Works”, had just been started.

I had become interested in the wonders of astronomy and mathematics, and had studied them for several years, sitting up late at night and often carrying my book to the field with me to read when I stopped work to rest. In this way I had studied geometry and surveying and commenced algebra. I was delighted with mathematics and the profound problems it could solve. I considered it the greatest of sciences by far. If land could have been bought and paid for by farming, probably I would have part of the country and it was impossible for a poor farm boy to ever own a farm of his own. Hence, I looked for something better. At last, father told me to the Schenectady Lyceum that winter. I very readily accepted this offer, and so soon as all the fall work was done, up I went to Schenectady and entered this school, The Lyceum was a High or Grammar school, where students were prepared for college. Latin, Greek, grammar, arithmetic, algebra, geometry, chemistry, natural philosophy, etc., were taught here. It was an excellent school. William Kelly was principal, and William Milroy assistant, both graduates of Union College. I forget the other assistant teacher (Marginal note: Whitlock perhaps). Here then I spent the winter in the study of algebra, in which I made rapid progress, also chemistry, English grammar, writing and Natural Philosophy. A pleasant winter it was to me, and as I was attentive to my studies I made good progress.
One day, near the end of the term, the principal, Mr. Kelly, said to me, “Have you ever thought about going to college?” I told him I had not, that college was beyond my reach. He said it was not, and that I had a bright and active mind, and that I ought to cultivate it; that it was within my power, if my father was willing, and that if I would consent to go, he would write to my father on the subject – that he would point out a way by which I could go through Union College. The term ended about the first f March and I went home. Mr. Kelly wrote to father and it was decided that I should prepare for college. When the next term of the Lyceum opened, I was on hand with my Greek and Latin books, and began studying the languages, also mathematics. It usually took two years to prepare for the sophomore calss, but by dint of hard study I did the same work in one year and three months. In June, 1847, I was ready to be examined for admission to the sophomore class of Union College. A goodly number of students from other cities and two or three from the Lyceum met in the West College for our examinations. I think there were about 15 students came up for examination on this occasion. It was a scary time, but I got through all right, and was matriculated as student in the sophomore class of Union College. The college vacation had just commenced and so I went home to wait until the first of September, when the next college term would commence. Ah! I was a college student now, but that did not keep me out of the harvest field. I worked all through vacation on the farm and went back to college in September as tanned and sunburned as an Irishman on the railroad. The next or second term I did not attend college, but taught school to get the money to enable me to pay my way, keeping up the studies pursued by my class and at the opening of the third term, having to undergo an examination on these studies. The next winter I taught school again – this was the last term I missed. I taught at Warrenburgh, Warren County, N.Y., among the Adirondack Mountains on the banks of the beautiful Schroon River. I had a delightful time of it; the people were very clever and treated me nicely. In the spring term of college I was back again. I made the best use of the advantages of college that I could. In June, 1850, my college days were ended. I was graduated an A.B., standing no. 3 in my class. Rabbi J. Buckland graduated at the head of the class and George D. Cowles was second. My absence from college affected my standing.
Then I went home a graduate – the world was all before me. What should I do now? What I did do was to pitch into the harvest field and help father through with his harvest. Then I tried to get a place in an engineer corps on some railroad, but there were no vacancies. I took Horace Greeley’s advice and went West."

--written by Wakeman Wakeman Edwards, circa 1896