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| The
Lake and Campus Life
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"Here Is the Spot"We’re not here if not for this lake.
Hobart, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of New York,
believed in the need for higher learning at what was then
"the edge of America." Thanks largely to the
lake, Geneva was an emerging little hub of commerce, a
veritable gateway to the west, and, according to Mrs.
Basil Hall at the time, a "most beautiful village
laid out with gre Hobart, who was considering a few sites for his college, was a man of vision who appreciated a good view. According to his biographer, Hobart "felt and spoke as if God was to be worshiped in the works of nature as well as in those of grace." Sunrise on Seneca must have moved him. The good bishop and generations of alums will forever share that moment by the lake. — P.R. The Seneca Lake series was
researched and written by Dana Cooke and Peter Rolph '85 — writer/editors in the Office of College
Relations. Portions of the series also appear in the Fall
'97 issue of The
Pulteney St. Survey.
To request a copy, e-mail Susan Murad at murad@hws.edu. |
Everything, it seems,
begins by the water. On a September morning in 1822,
Bishop John Henry Hobart stood on the bluffs just south
of Geneva and looked out through a light mist on Seneca
Lake. After taking in the view, Hobart planted his staff
in the ground and turned to his colleagues. "Here,
gentlemen," he said, "is the spot."