PC dedicates statue of founder William Plumer Jacobs

Nov. 14, 2006

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A statue of the Rev. William Plumer Jacobs – founder of Presbyterian College and Thornwell Home and School for Children – was dedicated Tuesday on the college campus.

Members of the college community, representatives and students from Thornwell, local leaders, college trustees, and the Jacobs family all watched as the bronze statue was unveiled and listened as speakers reflected on the life and legacy of a gifted and stalwart servant of God and his people.

PC president Dr. John Griffith spoke of how a new young minister from Yorkville, S.C., came into a rough post-Civil War town and dedicated himself to transforming it into a bastion of hope, education, and service.

"While others saw difficulty, young Jacobs saw promise – and spent the remainder of his life in Clinton even though he had many opportunities to go elsewhere," he said. "He was convinced that a little country church (First Presbyterian Church of Clinton) could be made a tower of light and strength. And, thus, through hard work, devotion, and prayer, he proved his point."

The welfare of children, particularly orphans, was at the center of Jacobs' late 19th century vision, said Griffith. With few resources in hand, Jacobs nonetheless was able to find benefactors and raise money to build an orphanage and a place to educate young people in a Christian environment.

 "His dream began with a gift of 50 cents from a 10-year-old fatherless boy – and three years later on Oct. 1, 1875, a two-story building called the Home of Peace heralded the start of Thornwell Orphanage," he said.

Five years later, Griffith added, Jacobs founded Presbyterian College, then called Clinton College, to further the educations of those children and others in the region who desired a higher education. Jacobs also was instrumental in the early economic development of the town in which his three great passions – church, college, and orphanage – resided. A man of letters fluent in six different languages, he also began a printing enterprise, oversaw several publications, and encouraged Clinton's Bailey family to invest in the town's future.

"Perhaps most impressive of all, his life's work stands as an enduring testimony to his belief in the power of prayer," Griffith said. "… This man's personal motto for the 75 years of his life was 'I strive and try not to gain great things for myself but to gain them for God.' From that spirit, PC's own motto – Dum Vivimus Servimus, 'While We Live, We Serve' – is derived."

College trustee and patron Irwin Belk, who commissioned the statue of Jacobs, pointed to an oak tree just off of Broad Street where the statue is located.

"Every oak tree starts from one acorn and here's a man who grew greatness just like that tree," Belk said, adding that the Jacobs family remain his "living acorns."

"I congratulate you," he said. "We should preserve the history of a great family and I salute you."

PC student Arthur Middleton, a senior from Charleston, S.C., said his involvement in planning Tuesday's dedication gave him an opportunity to learn more about the founder of his alma mater and become inspired by his life of service.

"As a student, I am very grateful for the opportunity I've had to grow and learn while I've been at PC," he said. "I know that none of it would be possible without the generosity and work of the man we honor today. He had a vision and we made it a reality. I'm sure he would be proud of what PC and Thornwell have become and to know how many lives have been changed because of these two institutions. I know my life has been changed and I know it's because of William Plumer Jacobs ..."

After the ceremony, Jacobs' great-grandson and 1940 graduate William P. Jacobs III marveled at the monument to his forebear.

"I got choked up looking at it – I couldn't have said much after this," he said. "Just seeing it here – this has been quite an occasion. … (Jacobs) set a goal that most of the rest of us will never be able to reach – but we'll try."

Artist John Hebenstreit also was a guest at Tuesday's dedication ceremony. He said the statue of Jacobs – which was based on photographs of Jacobs provided by the college – took four months to sculpt and five months to cast in bronze. Seeing it unveiled in person was gratifying, he noted.

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