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Born August 2, 1845, Hubbard Henry Maynard came to Coe in 1903 to fill
the position of Field Financial Secretary. Upon his arrival, the
college was facing serious financial difficulties from expanding
enrollment. Dr. Maynard devised a plan
with President McCormick to begin an endowment campaign; over the next
five years he actively campaigned in Cedar Rapids and around the
country to raise money. By the time he
tendered his resignation in 1908 to accept the vice-presidency at Omaha
University, he had erased the college debt and created significant
assets. In his resignation letter he
states the debt had been paid as of June 1, 1907, and the college had
net assets of nearly $686,500, of which $341,000 had been raised by his
personal efforts. During that same time
period, he had sent an application for funds to philanthropist Andrew
Carnegie and began talks with Mrs. Elizabeth Voorhees.
These endeavors resulted in money for the
Carnegie Science Building and Voorhees Hall.
After his tenure in Omaha, Dr. Maynard resumed his position at Coe in
1911 and recommenced the endowment campaign. Though
sixty-six years of age, he still exhibited the drive evident while a
soldier during the Civil War. Enlisting in
the Army of the Potomac's 145h Pennsylvania Volunteers at age eighteen,
he fought throughout the remainder of the war and was present at
Appomattox Courthouse for Lee's surrender.
Fighting in the Civil War emphasized the importance of patriotism and
national unity to Dr. Maynard, and he spent the rest of his life
promoting the subject, pressing for the institution of a patriotism
department at Coe. One result of his
patriotic zeal was Dr. Maynard's election in 1911 as a vice-president
of the National Bureau for the Advancement of Patriotism.
On November 30, 1916, Dr. Maynard and the college achieved their $1
million goal ending the endowment campaign. These
funds were applied to making necessary renovations to the college, and,
with American involvement in the Great War appearing more and more
imminent, the administration and faculty decided this was an opportune
time to grant Dr. Maynard his request for a curriculum in patriotism.
Allocating $50,000 of the newly raised money, the college established
the Department of American History and Patriotism to compliment the
already existent History Department. According
to Dr. Maynard, the purpose of the department was "to cultivate in
college students the spirit of good will to all men, to inculcate a
respect for law, love of country, and a sense of responsibility to
their community, their nation, and their world."
This study in nationalism and its effects was
achieved through four courses the department did not share with the
History Department: Development of the International Mind; The
Evolution of Patriotism; The New Era and Its Program; and The History
of Patriotism. Courses were taught by
President Marquis and professors of the History and Social Sciences
departments. Although these special
courses in patriotism were eliminated from the college catalog in 1928,
the Department of American History and Patriotism Department continued
to exist for twenty more years until after World War II.
Dr. Maynard died unexpectedly of a stroke October 28, 1917, as he
prepared to commence yet another fundraising tour for the college with
his usual vigor. He died "in the harness"
as he had always wanted, and his tireless efforts had a substantial
impact on creating the Coe that exists today.
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