The Midas of the Wabash: A Biography of John Purdue

Authors

Robert C. Kriebel

Files

Series

The Founders Series

Page Count

196

Language

English

Description

A biography of noted businessman John Purdue (1802-1876), whose donations of time and money led to the founding of Indiana's land grant university-Purdue University-in 1869. Purdue also contributed to economically important bridge, railroad, and cemetery construction, the existence of Lafayette Savings Bank and the Battle Ground Collegiate Institute, cattle farming, Lafayette's public school system, and countless other worthy enterprises. To date there has been no published full length study of Mr. Purdue's life and work beyond casual street-talk that portrayed Purdue as a difficult individual with whom to work. This biography incorporates research efforts by previous writers with facts gleaned from newspaper coverage, official documents, and a few rare samples of Mr. Purdue's letters. In this way, a complete picture of the man and myth is generated.

ISBN

9781557539250 (ePDF)

Publication Date

Spring 4-15-2002

Publisher

Purdue University Press

City

West Lafayette

Keywords

John Purdue, philanthropy, Indiana, Purdue University, biography

Disciplines

Higher Education | Nonfiction

Recommended Citation

Kriebel, Robert C., The Midas of the Wabash: A Biography of John Purdue. (2002). Purdue University Press.