Adonijah Welch

Adonijah Strong Welch (April 12, 1821March 14, 1889) was a United States Senator from Florida and the first president of Iowa State Agricultural College (now Iowa State University). Welch also served as Michigan State Normal School's first principal (now Eastern Michigan University). Early life Born in East Hampton, Connecticut, Welch moved to Jonesville, Michigan, in 1839 and graduated from the University of Michigan in 1846. Welch was admitted to the bar in 1847 and became a high school principal in 1849. He spent about a year participating in the California Gold Rush of 1849. Career Welch served as the first principal of Michigan State Normal School (now Eastern Michigan University) from 1851 to 1865. In 1859, he married Eunice P. Buckingham and they had three children. In 1865, Welch moved to Pensacola, Florida, and eventually to Jacksonville, Florida, for unspecified health reasons. There, he established a lumber mill and engaged in orange growing. His wife, Eunice, died in 1867. In 1868, he married Mary Beaumont Dudley, with whom he had two more children.