Aaron Burr Sr.

Aaron Burr Sr. was a notable Presbyterian minister and college educator in colonial America. He was a founder of the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University) and the father of Aaron Burr (1756–1836), the third vice president of the United States. When Jonathan Dickinson, the first president of the College, died soon after his appointment in 1747, Burr (who taught at the College) then became the second president on November 9, 1748. During his tenure (1748–1757), the curriculum was settled, the student body increased from 8 in 1747 to 40–50 in 1751, and the first commencement was held. Among the first graduates was Richard Stockton, a signer of the Declaration of Independence; five others became Presbyterian ministers. Burr moved the College to its permanent home at Princeton, New Jersey, where he supervised the construction of Nassau Hall, Princeton's best-known structure and the largest building in colonial New Jersey when it was completed in 1756. In 1755, Burr was relieved of his pastoral duties in order to concentrate full-time on his work at Princeton. At age 32, he became the youngest person ever to serve as president of Princeton.