Benjamin Rush Rhees (1860–1939) was the third president of the University of Rochester, serving from 1900-1935.
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Rhees earned his undergraduate degrees from Amherst College where he was a member of Alpha Delta Phi[1]. He graduated from the Hartford Theological Seminary and was ordained a Baptist minister.
He served in the position from 1900 to 1935. When he arrived at the University, it had been without a president for four years.
Under his tenure, George Eastman became a donor to the University, contributing in the largest capacity the University had seen. The Eastman School of Music was begun during Rhees' tenure, as was the University's medical center and the College for Women (1902). Additionally, Rhees' administration was responsible for moving the campus from Prince Street to its current home on the River Campus (formerly Oak Hill golf course), with a groundbreaking in 1927.[2]
His son Rush Rhees was a Wittgenstein scholar and one of the philosopher's literary executors.
| Preceded by David Jayne Hill |
President of University of Rochester 1900 – 1935 |
Succeeded by Alan Valentine |