Author: Head, Joseph
Biography:
HEAD, Joseph (1785-1882: WorldCat)
The son of a wealthy Boston merchant, Joseph Head, and his wife Elizabeth (Frazier) Head, Joseph Head Jr. graduated from Harvard in the class of 1804. His Phi Beta Kappa poem was written "on short notice" for an anniversary in 1809; he does not appear ever to have published again. In 1816 he married Anna Frances Barnett (d 1856); they had eight children. As the last surviving member of his class and the oldest living graduate of the university, he was the subject of a useful short article in the Harvard Register in 1881: it records his membership in a cavalry regiment, the Boston Hussars; his shifting but strong political opinions; and his loyalty to the Episcopalian church. He presumably carried on the family's business interests and engaged in philanthropic work. He donated money to the Harvard Divinity School and chaired the Board of Massachusetts General Hospital in the late 1820s. (Harvard Register 3 [1881] 404-5; WorldCat) HJ
Other Names:
- Joseph Head, Jr.