SHELDON JACKSON

SHELDON JACKSON

Alaska’s Pioneer Educator

After graduating from Princeton Theological Seminary in 1858 at the age of twenty-four and marrying Mary Voorhees, Sheldon Jackson threw his heart and soul into "home missions" for the Presbyterian Church, which he extended—in time—to Alaska, an area many considered "foreign" territory.

For ten years he taught in a Choctaw Indian school in Oklahoma and then in Minnesota. Then he went into general church work in the West, including Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Utah, and Arizona. Then in 1877 he visited Alaska and saw the desperate need for education and opportunity for ministry through church-sponsored schools.

However, it soon became apparent that this undertaking would require more money than the Presbyterians or other denominations could provide. In 1884 Jackson lobbied successfully for the "Organic Act," which provided Alaska with a U.S. district court, a marshal, a district attorney, four commissioners, and federal aid for education. Jackson then nominated himself and received appointment from President Grover Cleveland as the general agent for education in Alaska.

Now he had the authority, the money, and the personnel (through church mission organizations) to plant or expand schools throughout Alaska.

In response to the threat of famine among the Eskimos due to excessive whale and seal harvesting, Jackson introduced reindeer from Siberia and Lapland.

At times the reindeer projects were very controversial. When it looked as if they would be needed to save the Klondike gold miners, many in the States declared him a hero. When they proved unnecessary, he was criticized for foolish extravagance. But the reindeer were successful in that they ultimately thrived in the region and became essential in the economy and diet of many native peoples.

Jackson supervised Alaskan missions for the Presbyterians from 1884 through 1907 and was elected moderator of the whole Presbyterian Church in 1897. He died at home in 1909.