McKinnon, Luther

(b. 1840 d. 1916) The first Davidson alumnus to become president of the college, Reverend Luther McKinnon, D.D. was salutatorian of the class of 1861 and had served as a Confederate chaplain. McKinnon, also, served as the president of Floral College in Robeson County, North Carolina, and as a trustee of the Davidson College from 1870 until 1885, and President of the Board of Trustees from 1878 until 1885. Almost immediately after assuming the presidency of Davidson College in 1885, he suffered an attack of what was diagnosed as “rheumatism.” His illness forced him to submit his resignation in 1887, although the Board of Trustees did not accept it until 1888. McKinnon’s illness left him an invalid, and he died in 1916.

Presidents – Works Cited

Robert Hall Morrison, Samuel Williamson, Drury Lacy, John Lycan Kirkpatrick, George Wilson McPhail, John Rennie Blake, Andrew Dousa Hepburn, Luther McKinnon, John Bunyan Shearer, Henry Louis Smith, William Joseph Martin, Jr., Walter Lee Lingle, John Rood Cunningham, David Grier Martin, Samuel Reid Spencer, Jr., John Wells Kuykendall, Robert Fredrick Vagt, Thomas Warren Ross, Sr.

Beaty, Mary D. A History of Davidson College. Davidson, N.C.: Briarpatch, 1988.

Beaty, Mary D. and Sarah Merritt. “Davidson College Time Line and the Evolution of Chambers.” Davidson Journal 1 (1987): 12-13.

Cromartie, Caroline King. The Physical Development of Davidson, North Carolina: An Historical Analysis. Davidson College Honors Thesis, 1978.

“Davidson Apoints Thomas W. Ross, Sr., As College’s Next President.” Davidson College Press Release, 29 March 2007, on the World Wide Web at: <http://www3.davidson.edu/cms/x23408.xml>

Davidson, Chalmers Gaston. “Davidson Celebrates.” Davidson Journal 1 (1987): 2-7.

Davidson, Chalmers Gaston. Mid-Point for ’28. Davidson, N.C.: Davidson College, 1953.

Fischer, Karl W. The Mystics and Beta Theta Pi. Germantown, PA: Beta Theta Pi, 1940.

Giduz, Bill. “President Vagt Announces His Plans to Retire.” Davidson College. 8 June 2006. Found on the World Wide Web at <http://www2.davidson.edu/common/templates/news/news_tmp02.asp?newsid=6550>.

“An Honored Career .” Davidson College Press Release, 29 March 2007, on the World Wide Web at: <http://www3.davidson.edu/cms/x23404.xml>

Kelley, Robert Lincoln. Davidson College: A Diagnosis and a Prescription. Lancaster, PA: Council of Church Boards of Education in the U.S.A., 1926.

Lingle, Walter L. Memories of Davidson College. Richmond, VA: John Knox, 1947.

Logan, Van Lear. “Growing Up in Davidson.” Davidson Journal 1 (1987): 20-23.

“Presidential Biography. ” Davidson College Press Release, 29 March 2007, on the World Wide Web at: <http://www3.davidson.edu/cms/x23405.xml>

Ramsey, Robert Wilson. Milestones Backward Run: The Story of Beta Theta Pi at Davidson,1858-1940. Davidson, NC: The Phi Alpha Chapter of Beta Theta Pi, 1940.

Ratliff, Charles E. Economics at Davidson: A Sesquicentennial History. Davidson, NC: Davidson College, 1987.

Scherer, John P. A Code of Civility: Antiwar Dissent at Davidson College During the Vietnam Era. Davidson College Honors Thesis, 1989.

Shames, Steven A. A Good Faith Effort: Integration at Davidson College. Davidson College Honors Thesis, 1996.

Shaw, Cornelia Rebekah. Davidson College. New York: Fleming H. Revell, 1923.

Shaw, Cornelia Rebekah, comp. War Records of Davidson College, 1917-1918. Charlotte, NC: Presbyterian Standard, 1923.

Spencer, Samuel R. The First Year. Davidson, NC: Davidson College, 1969.

Shaw, Cornelia Rebekah. Davidson College. New York: Fleming H. Revell, 1923.

“Timeline.” Davidson College Press Release, 29 March 2007, on the World Wide Web at: <http://www3.davidson.edu/cms/x23406.xml>

Author: Molly P. Gillespie
Date: 1998

Cite as: Gillespie, Molly P. “Luther McKinnon ” Davidson Encyclopedia
1998 https://digitalprojects.davidson.edu/omeka/s/college-archives-davidson-encyclopedia/page/mckinnon-luther

Related Links: McKinnon’s Presidential Portrait