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James Henry McMurray was born
March 26, 1871 to Ebenezer Gordon and Lydia Van Lehn McMurray in Tuscarawas
County, Ohio. He is said to have been born in a log cabin on the summit of
one of the highest hills in the county. James grew up in the Moravian
Church. Mainly educated in the district
school J. H. McMurray left home at the age of nineteen to attend Oberlin
Academy where he would complete his pre-college preparatory work. After
graduation he went on to enroll in the classical course at Oberlin College
and graduated in 1897. While at Oberlin he was a football hero and served as an instructor in the
Oberlin Gymnasium. After graduation at Oberlin he was hired to a position as superintendent of schools in North Clarendon, Pennsylvania but resigned before the beginning of the school year to accept a position at the new Central College (Huntington University) as a professor of science and French. Before moving to College Park (now part of Huntington, Indiana) he married Miss Katherine (Kitty) Belle Romig on August 15, 1897. Katherine Romig was a home town native but did not get his notice until she attended the Oberlin Conservatory where she studied piano. The marriage produced three children. Two daughters, Elizabeth Claire and Ruth Romig, and one son, Jean (or Gene). Elizabeth Claire became Claire MacMurray Howard, a famous columnist for the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Professor McMurray remained as Professor of Sciences from 1897 to 1905. In 1900-1901 he was granted a leave of absence to pursue graduate work at Harvard University. While at Harvard Professor McMurray was made a member of a commission performing investigations a Wood's Hole, Massachusetts for the United States Fish Commission. He received a MA from Harvard specializing in botany, geology and zoology. In 1902 Central College president C. H. Kiracofe resigned to become the editor of the Christian Conservator. The United Brethren Board of Education elected Professor McMurray as General Secretary and president of Central College at this time. During his administration the college added athletics, physical education classes, a teacher's Normal Course, bookkeeping and shorthand courses. It was also during his term that a steam heating plant was installed for the campus. President McMurray was well liked by faculty and students and had the respect of the communities businessmen. The period between 1901 and 1905 was a turbulent time for the United Brethren denomination. It was during this period that the "Publishing House Controversy" occurred and many prominent leaders within the denomination left for other denominations. One of the likely casualties of the controversy was J. H. McMurray. During the affair President McMurray had sided with the appeasers who eventually gave up their case against Bishop Milton Wright. Many of those who opposed Wright did not feel welcome within the denomination anymore and decided to serve elsewhere. McMurray tried to resign after the spring term in 1905 but his resignation was not accepted by the Board of Education. Many encouraged him to reconsider his decision and he came to a compromise with the board that would allow him to stay. In particular he wished for an administrative assistant to help relieve him of some responsibilities. This compromise did not last though and later that summer he accepted a position as president of Lincoln College in Lincoln, Illinois. McMurray served as president of Lincoln from 1905 to ... His administration there brought about many reforms and a systematic revision of the college courses. In 1908, while also serving as Lincoln's president, he received a PhD from James Milliken University. Dr. McMurray left Lincoln College in ... to help in the Red Cross effort during World War I. He was put in charge of the Red Cross at Camp Tyler (location unknown). During this period Kitty McMurray taught a food conservation course at Oberlin College. From there he joined the faculty of Maryville College in Maryville, Tennessee in 1920 to serve as Professor of Political Science and Sociology. He also served as the chairman of the Maryville College Athletic Council. Katherine McMurray taught Home Economics at the college and was responsible for creating the College Maid Shop. In 1937 Dr. McMurray was invited to speak at the Huntington College commencement where he was given an honorary doctor of laws degree. Dr. McMurray died in Maryville on April 5, 1938 at the age of 69. Sources: Chambers, Doris M., Up From Stubble: A Saga of College Park, Ubee, Indiana. Huntington, Ind.: Hill Crest Lithographing, 1973. p. 209, 220-223. Pfister, Ralph, 75 Years, Where Character and Culture Blend. Huntington, Ind.: Huntington College, 1972. p. 24, 26. Skinner, Lawrence B., History of Logan County, Vol. II, [Chicago: Pioneer Publishing Company, 1911] p. 5-6. Writings: McMurray, J. H. "Seeing God in Science." The U. B. C. Vol. 6. Huntington, Ind. Central College, 1905. |
