Abstract
This essay calls for a more careful evaluation of the legacy of Quakerism at Haverford College by paying close attention to Isaac Sharpless, his redefinition of the college’s religious mission and the practical implications of his vision on the student body. It argues that Sharpless redefined Haverford’s Quaker character in a way that allowed the college to expand its religious mission to include the sons of the white Protestant elite while largely excluding young men from less socially desirable Catholic, Black, and Jewish backgrounds. Haverford gained prestige as a result of this redefinition. At the same time, however, the student body gradually became more patrician and less Friendly, so that Episcopalians and Presbyterians outnumbered Quakers by the early 1920s, if not earlier. Based on this observation, the essay calls for a more robust discussion of the extent to which it is accurate to describe Haverford as a Quaker college.
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