William Isaac Chamberlain (1837-1920), a native of Connecticut, graduated (1859) from Western Reserve College (Case Western Reserve University). After serving as a Greek instructor (1859-1865), Chamberlain returned to his family's Ohio farm and proceeded to conduct agricultural experiments related to farm fertilizers, drainage, and crop rotation. He published his studies in agricultural journals, and was elected State Secretary of Agriculture (1880-1886) in Ohio, where he organized Farmer's Institutes. He served as president (1886-1890) of Iowa State College (Iowa State University), but his presidency was marked by outside criticism for not focusing on agriculture and for supporting student fraternities. After his resignation, he returned to Ohio where he was a Trustee for the Ohio State University and the Ohio Experiment Station and became Associate Editor of the Ohio Farmer and National Stockman and Farmer. William Chamberlain married Lucy Jones Marshall in 1863 and they had 6 children. Dr. Chamberlain died in Cleveland in 1920.
From the description of Papers, 1886-1997. (Iowa State University). WorldCat record id: 54009621
