Biography
Martin Henry Freeman was born to Charles and Patience Freeman in Rutland, Vermont in 1826. He prepared for college with Rev. William Mitchell before matriculating at Middlebury College in 1845. He graduated in 1849 as the salutatorian of his class.
In 1850 Freeman became a junior professor at Allegheny Institute (now Avery College) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the first black college professor in the United States. He was eventually appointed president of the school, the first black college president in the United States.
Over time Freeman came to feel that the United States was not a healthy place for black people to live and came to advocate for emigration to Africa. In 1863 he moved to Liberia where he taught mathematics at Liberia College in Monrovia. In 1868 he was appointed college president and served in that capacity until his death in 1889.Education
BA, Middlebury College (1849)
MA Honorary, Middlebury College (1852)Occupation
Professor
College President