James Manning

James Manning (born Oct. 22, 1738, Piscataway, N.J.—died July 29, 1791, Providence, R.I., U.S.) was a U.S. Baptist clergyman who founded Rhode Island College (renamed Brown University in 1804) and served as its first president. Manning, a graduate of Princeton in 1762, was ordained to the Baptist ministry the following year. Baptist authorities, intent on founding a college, put Manning, who had graduated second in his class, in charge of the project. A site was...