Edwin C. Hewett

Training at Bridgewater

Edwin C. Hewett (1828-1905) was the third president of Illinois State Normal University. Born in Massachusetts, Hewett was trained and later worked as an educator at the first normal school in the United States, Bridgewater Normal School. After moving to the Midwest, ISNU President Charles Hovey asked Hewett to become the university’s history and geography professor. Hewett agreed and started in 1858.

Financial Difficulty

After Richard Edward’s retirement, the university began the search for a new president. The search did not take long as the faculty elected Hewett to the post. Hewett stepped into the presidency at a time that was financially difficult for the university and the nation. His predecessor had tried and failed to get three facilities constructed. In an attempt to slow declining enrollment numbers, Hewett launched a display project for the 1876 Philadelphia Exposition. The display showed fair-goers how his normal school was innovative in training teachers. In Hewett’s final year as president, he hired the university’s first librarian (and current library’s namesake), Angeline Vernon Milner.

A Lifelong Educator

Hewett stepped down from the presidency in 1890 but remained active in the profession. He became the associate editor of School and Home Education and was the founder of the University Center (later called the Normal Literary Center). Hewett died on March 31, 1905 and was buried in Evergreen Memorial Cemetery in Bloomington, Illinois.