William Barton Rogers (1804-1882) is best known for incorporating the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1861. However, the new school was not opened until 1865, due to the American Civil War. He attended the College of William and Mary and served as Professor of Natural Philosophy and Chemistry there for 8 years from 1828 until 1835 (his father previously held the very same professorship at William & Mary until his death in 1928). He then served as Professor of Natural Philosophy for 19 years (1835 to 1853) at the University of Virginia, and was Chair of the Department of Philosophy there before serving as President of MIT from 1861 to 1870. Declining health forced him to stand down from this position, but he was forced by necessity to resume office in 1878 and continued to serve through to the year before his death, 1881. He died after having collapsed while giving a speech at MIT's 1882 Commencement Exercises, in which his last words were "bituminous coal". 1804 was a leap year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... 1882 (MDCCCLXXXII) was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... The Massachusetts Institute of Technology, or MIT, is a university located in the city of Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA. MIT is one of the worlds leading research institutions in science and technology. ... 1861 is a common year starting on Tuesday. ... 1865 (MDCCCLXV) is a common year starting on Sunday. ... Combatants Union (remaining U.S. states) Confederate States of America Commanders Abraham Lincoln† Ulysses S. Grant Jefferson Davis Robert E. Lee Strength 2,200,000 1,064,000 Casualties KIA: 110,000 Total dead: 360,000 Wounded: 275,200 KIA: 94,000 Total dead: 258,000 Wounded: 137,000+  The... Website WM.edu The College of William and Mary in Virginia (also referred to as W&M or simply The College) is a small public university located in Williamsburg, Virginia, USA. It is the second-oldest institution of higher education in the United States (after Harvard University). ... 1828 was a leap year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... | Come and take it, slogan of the Texas Revolution 1835 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... College of William and Mary The College of William and Mary in Virginia is a public, liberal-arts university located in Williamsburg, Virginia. ... | Come and take it, slogan of the Texas Revolution 1835 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... 1853 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... Website Virginia. ... 1861 is a common year starting on Tuesday. ... 1870 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... 1878 (MDCCCLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... 1881 (MDCCCLXXXI) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... 1882 (MDCCCLXXXII) was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... Bituminous coal Bituminous coal is a soft coal containing a tar-like substance called bitumen. ...

External link

• Official mini-biography - from MIT

Presidents of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology

William Barton Rogers (1862–1870, 1879–1881) • John Daniel Runkle (1870–1878) • Francis Amasa Walker (1881–1897) • James Crafts (1897–1900) • Henry Smith Pritchett (1900–1907) • Arthur Amos Noyes (acting 1907–1909) • Richard Cockburn Maclaurin (1909–1920) • Elihu Thomson (acting 1920–1921, 1922–1923) • Ernest Fox Nichols (1921–1922) • Samuel Wesley Stratton (1923–1930) • Karl Taylor Compton (1930–1948) • James Rhyne Killian (1948–1959) • Julius Adams Stratton (1959–1966) • Howard Wesley Johnson (1966–1971) • Jerome Wiesner (1971–1980) • Paul Edward Gray (1980–1990) • Charles Marstiller Vest (1990–2004) • Susan Hockfield (2004—)