John Hough James: First Grad Was Pen Pal with Founding Father

The University of Cincinnati’s first valedictorian John Hough James received the first diploma issued by the institution in 1821, signed by no less than college trustee William Henry Harrison, Sr., who would go on to become the ninth president of the United States.

In conducting his thesis research in 1820 on the life of Thaddeus Kosciusko, a general in the American Revolution, James wrote to and received a reply from Thomas Jefferson, author of the Declaration of Independence and third president of the United States. Jefferson, who was then in his late 70s, provided the young college student sound advice on sources for his thesis project.

James, himself a gifted writer and editor, kept a diary from a young age until his death in 1881, chronicling his multifaceted career as an Ohio farmer, stock breeder, lawyer, banker, railroad builder and state senator. Few men of the west kept so complete a record of the times in which they lived, including his interviews with those who had known George Washington, Alexander Hamilton and Benjamin Franklin.

On the day of his graduation from Cincinnati College, during which he delivered an oration on literature and science, James wrote: “I did rather better than I expected, and I am flattered with having drawn tears from some of the ladies and some of my fellow students. I have the honor of being the first graduate of Cincinnati College, and though I leave it with highest honors it can bestow, I leave it with regret.”