Rutgers University. Office of the University Chaplain (Bradford S. Abernethy)

The position of Rutgers University Chaplain was created by the Board of Trustees in October 1926. Prior to the creation of this position, duties such as arranging for chapel preachers rested with the college President. The first Rutgers Chaplain was Dr. Stanley White, a Presbyterian minister who held the position between 1926 and 1928. As chaplain, his main duty was "oversight of the religious and spiritual interests of the university." (1) He was also expected to serve as an adviser to students and the Y.M.C.A.

White's successor was Colonel John Thomas Axton, former Chief of Chaplains of the U.S. Army, who had officiated at the burial of the Unknown Soldier in 1921. (2) Axton left Rutgers in 1931 after suffering a stroke. Fraser Metzger, Dean of Men was Acting Chaplain between Axton's departure and 1944, when he officially became Chaplain. (3) He held this position for a short term, retiring from Rutgers June 30, 1945.

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