1895-1915: Martin, Reaser, & McKeag
Dr. Samuel Martin (1895-1903)
Dr. Samuel Albert Martin was born in Canonsburg, PA in 1853. He was educated at Lafayette (class of 1877) and Princeton Theological Seminary (class of 1880). He received his Doctorate of Divinity in 1892. He served as the pastor of Christ Church in Lebanon from 1882-1885, and as professor of homiletics at Lincoln University from 1885-1895.
Dr. Martin was inaugurated as Wilson's president on May 28, 1895. While Martin was President, Wilson greatly expanded its facilities including the President's Hall (infirmary), Harmony Cottage, Science Hall, Latin School (Brick House), South Hall, a new gymnasium, a new dining hall, and work on the Frank Thomson Music Hall was begun. He was a champion of the music and art departments at Wilson. In addition, the Kittochtinny Historical Society was founded in the Martin home in 1898. After the death of Mrs. Edgar (Lady Principal), Dr. Martin and the trustees revised the administration of the college by removing the position of Lady Principle and dividing the responsibilities of the position between a Mistress of the Home (a new position at the college) and the Dean of the College.
Dr. Martin left in 1903 to become president of Pennsylvania College for Women (now Chatham) until 1906. He served as chief executive/principal at Shippensburg University from 1907-1913. The President's House on that campus is named for him. He died in 1921.
Rev. Dr. Matthew Howell Reaser (1903-1911)
Rev. Dr. Reaser officially accepted the presidency in a letter written on June 10, 1903. Dr. Reaser had been previously employed at Lindenwood College. His focus during his years at Wilson College was on increasing enrollment at the college, enlarging Wilson’s endowment fund, and advertising the college more widely throughout the East and Midwest. As a result of Dr. Reaser’s efforts, an Endowment Committee was established and by 1910, $20,000 had been raised in the form of money and pledges to the college.
Under President Reaser, Wilson's campus doubled in size to nearly 50 acres. In 1906, the athletic fields were developed on North campus. Reaser also sought to stiffen entrance requirements and increased the number of available elective courses. One of his first actions as President was to establish the Department of Bible in 1903.
During this time, Wilson's campus changed and modernized. The preparatory department was spun off into its own entity – Penn Hall School for Girls. Philadelphia Avenue which originally ran directly through campus was re-routed around the campus. In 1903, Thomson Hall was finished and occupied. A pipe organ was added to the chapel, and the first telephone exchange was established in the newly enlarged post-office in 1909.
He resigned on June 7, 1911.
Dr. Anna J. McKeag (1911-1915)
Dr. McKeag had a long association with Wilson College.
She became an instructor at Wilson in 1891. McKeag had been privately educated by faculty from Washington and Jefferson College. President Martin arranged for her to be granted a bachelor’s degree from Wilson in 1895 because he understood that not having the credential would be a hindrance to her career. She was then able to pursue a PhD at the University of Pennsylvania in 1900. McKeag was a professor and dean (1900-1902) before leaving to serve as the Head of the Department of Education at Wellesley College in 1902. She taught a considerable range of subjects at Wilson including literature, history, rhetoric, logic, economics, psychology, philosophy, and ethics. She left Wilson in 1902 to serve as Head of the Department of Education at Wellesley College.
She returned to Wilson in 1911 to serve as the college’s first female President. As president, she redesigned the administration into three departments acting under an executive officer and herself to encourage efficiency in handling the college/s affairs. Dr. McKeag had a strong focus on admissions requirements for potential students and was quoted as saying “Better a Freshman Class of 50 well prepared earnest students than a class of 100 ill assorted young people, the majority of whom are not college timber”. Her influence on student life was significant, as Dr. McKeag began a dissolution of sororities and clubs on campus in order to improve the overall social experience of students. She resigned from her position as president on August 1, 1915 to return to Wellesley. In 1932, Dr. McKeag was presented with an honorary degree from Wilson College.