Title page of a book titled "The Life and Public Services of Justin Smith Morrill" by William Belmont Parker, published in 1924 by Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston and New York.

Black and white portrait of an elderly man with wavy gray hair, seated in a wooden chair, wearing a dark jacket, white shirt, and bow tie.

Title page of a speech document from December 15, 1880, by Hon. Justin S. Morrill of Vermont, presented to the United States Senate. The page includes the title "On the Educational Bill" and details about the speech and location.

Title page of a book titled 'Vermont History,' published in January 1962 by the Vermont Historical Society in Montpelier.

Page from an old publication titled "Arnoldia," dated June 7, 1968, Volume 28, Number 6. The page discusses Justin Smith Morrill and his contributions to horticultural activities, his biography, and his role in the U.S. Congress.

Historical document page titled "Speech of Hon. Justin S. Morrill, of Vermont, in the Senate of the United States, Saturday, June 14, 1890," published in Washington, 1890.

Historic newspaper clipping of a speech by Hon. Justin S. Morrill of Vermont, delivered on June 6, 1862, in the House of Representatives, discussing the Civil War, military readiness, and national unity.

From Vermont Culture, Council on the Future of Vermont dialogues, 2007

“Remember where Vermont comes from. Social responsibility is our hallmark.... History affects our present and the future; it gives you a clue where you want to go.”

Morrill and The Land Grant Legacy

… “Legislators to take heed that all those who wield power at the ballot-box shall be fully informed of the high trust they hold, and of their duty to discharge that trust with fidelity to the whole country and to the sacred obligations of an enlightened conscience. All of our citizens–not a privileged part–must be raised to that intellectual and moral dignity which appreciates and accepts some personal responsibility to their country for their political privileges and for their appropriate exercise.”

Justin Morrill, the Education Bill

… “There may be some parties who, through technical refinements, would limit the whole operations of government to the punishment of crime, to levying and collecting t… “There may be some parties who, through technical refinements, would limit the whole operations of government to the punishment of crime, to levying and collecting taxes, to declaring war and raising and supporting armies, and other Kindred subjects; but would include nothing which tends to elevate man above the level of useful animals, or above very common automatic machines. That was not the government foreshadowed by the Declaration of Independence, and not the government of the Constitution founded on the will of the people."axes, to declaring war and raising and supporting armies, and other Kindred subjects; but would include nothing which tends to elevate man above the level of useful animals, or above very common automatic machines. That was not the government foreshadowed by the Declaration of Independence, and not the government of the Constitution, founded on the will of the people.”

Centenary exercises in honor of the late Senator, Justin S, Morrill, by the State of Vermont, 1910

and like Hephaestus,

this son of a frontier blacksmith,

forged our modern nation.

Old black and white photograph of a rural town with a dirt road leading to a building with a large dome and a steeple, surrounded by trees and a white fence.

University of Vermont, Thomas Easterly, 1845

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e-resources / links to articles, orginal documents, and websites used in this research project.

with special thanks to the Library of Congress and the Vermont Historical Society for the collection of research notes, photocopies, and articles assembled by E. Gwenda Smith, Justin Morrill’s neighbor in Strafford, as she became an authority on the life of U.S. Senator Justin Smith Morrill of Strafford, Vermont.