Page:The Biographical Dictionary of America, vol. 08.djvu/84

 NICHOLS

NICHOLS

Charles city, Iowa. 1883-83, superintendent of the Nashua, Iowa, public schools, 1883-87; assistant professor of matheinatics of the State Uiiivsrsitj' of Iowa, 1887-110; professor of phj'sics at the Kansas State Agricultural college, 1890-99, and was elected president of the college in 1809. He was married, Dec. 20, 1888, to Marguerite Rae Nichols.

NICHOLS, Francis, soldier, was born in Crieve Hill. EiiiiisUillL'ii. Ireland, in 17:37. He immigrated to America in 1709 with his brotlier William (17r)4-1804), who became captain and quarter- master in the American army. They settled in Cumberland county, Pa., and Francis enlisted in the patriot army in June, 1775; was pro- moted 2d lieutenant, and took part in the battle of Quebec, Dec. 31, 1775, where he was taken prisoner. He was released in August, 1776. and Ills sword was returned to him in the presence of all the American oflicers. He rose in the army to the grade of brigadier-general. At the close of the war he was elected first U.S. mar- shal of the eastern district of Pennsylvania. He died in Pottstown. Pa., Feb. 13, 1812.

NICHOLS, George, eilucationist, was born in Nortlifiel.l. Vt., April 17. 1827; son of James and Aiiiiis Aiken (Dole) Nichols, and grandson of Eleazer Nichols, a member of the body guard of Gen. Wasliington at Valley Forge, and a sol- dier during the entire Revolution. George as- sisted his father, a carpenter, when not attend- ing the district school. He attended the Orange county grammar school, 1840; tauglit in the Northfield district school, 1841-42; studied pri- vately, taught and attended Newbury, Vt., semi- nary, 1842-48, and was graduated with high honors from the Vermont Medical college, Wood- stock, in 1851, declining the position of de- monstrator of anatomy there. He was state libra- rian. 1848-53, and entered upon the practice of medicine, combining with it the drug business, in 1854. In 1862-05 he served as surgeon of the loth Vermont volunteers and had charge of the field hospitals of the l.st corps at Gettysburg. He was secretary of state of Vermont, 1865-84; president of the state constitutional conven- tion of 1870; a delegate to the Republican national convention at Pliiladelphia in 1872; a member of the Republican national com- mittee, 1872-84, and secretary and chairman of the state committee, 1873-84. He was an offi- cer in several railroad companies and director and president of the Nortlifield nation.'il l)ank, 1875-1900. He was elected a trustee of the North- field institution, in 1865; was a director of the Northfield graded and high school for twelve years; a trustee of the Vermont Episcopal insti- tute at Burlington, and for several years a mem- ber of the executive board. He took an active

interest in the removal of Norwioli university to Northfield, in 1866. and in that year was elected a trustee and treasurer of the institution. He was vice-president and acting president of tiie university, 1885-95, and contributed liberally toward the construction of the first university building, also rendering much subsequent aid. He was married in 1852 to Ellen Maria, daughter of Abijah Blake of Vergennes, Vt., and their two cliihlren died in infancy. Norwich univer- sity conferred upon him the honorary degree of LL.D. in 1881.

NICHOLS, Herbert, ps}'chologist and author, was born in Walpole, N.H., Feb. 7, 1852; son of Amos and Lydia (Nichols) Nichols; grandson of Capt. Thomas and Tirzali (Lamson) Nichols, and a descendant of Lieut. John Nichols, who served in the Revolutionary war; also of John Nicol, the first ancestor in America, who landed in Boston about 1750, and of Alexandre (Lincon) Nicol. a Hu- guenot refugee. He was graduated from the W'or- cester Polytechnic institute, B.S., 1871, and took a special course in architecture and engineering. He was a civil engineer in the main office of the Pennsylvania railroad, 1874-84; studied in Ger- many and France, 1887-88; was instructor in psychology at Harvard university, 1891-93, and a lecturer at Johns Hopkins university in 1896. He was married, Oct. 1, 1900, to Jenny L., daughter of Franklin Ward, of North Orange, Mass. The honorary degree of Ph.D. was conferred on him by Clark university in 1891. He was elected a member of the American Psychological associa- tion, 1891; of the American Society of Natur- alists in 1892, and of the New York Pliilosopiiical club in 1900. He is the author of: The Psy- chology of Time (1891); Our Notions of Nziniher and Space (1894); A Treatise on Cosmology (1902), and many monographs including: 27ie Origin of Pleasure and Pain; How We Came to Have Minds; The Feelings; The Motor Power of Ideas, and Psychology of Education.

NICHOLS, Matthias H., representative, was born in Sharpstown, N.J., Oct. 3, 1824. He learned tiie printers' trade and removed to Ohio in 1842, where he was a printer. He was ad- mitted to the bar in 1849, and settled in practice in Lima, Allen county, Ohio. He served as pros- ecuting attorney of Allen county and was a Re- publican representative from the fourth district in the 33d, 34th and 35th congresses. 1853-59. He died in Cincinnati, Ohio. Sei)t. 15. 1802.

NICHOLS, Othniel Foster, civil engineer, was born in Newport, R.I., July 29, 1845; son of Thomas Pitman and Lydia (Foster) Nichols; grandson of William Stoddard and Eliza (Pitman) Nichols, and of Othniel and Eunice (Browning) Foster, and a descendant of Sergt. Thomas Nichols, who emigrated from Wales to Newport,