John Witherspoon Scott

John Witherspoon Scott was born on January 22, 1800, in Beaver County, Pennsylvania. His parents were George McElroy Scott (1759–1848) and Anna Rey (1775–1852). Scott pursued higher education at Yale University and was subsequently ordained as a Presbyterian minister.

In the 1820s, Scott was employed at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, where he served as the institution's first professor of science. His tenure there ended when he was dismissed due to his anti-slavery views during the presidency of George Junkin. Following this, he spent several years teaching in Cincinnati before returning to Oxford in 1849. That year, he was appointed as the first president of the Presbyterian Oxford Female Institute. His daughter Caroline Scott graduated from this institution in 1852.

Scott married Mary Potts Neal on October 12, 1811. She passed away in 1876. Together, they had five children: Elizabeth Mayhew Scott (1828–1889), who married Russell Farnham Lord (1802–1867); Caroline Lavinia "Carrie" Scott (1832–1892), who married Benjamin Harrison in 1853; John Neal Scott (1836–1898), who married Eleanor Gorgas; Henry M. Scott (1838–1877); and Mary E. Scott (1843–1872), who married James W. Spear.

In 1853, Scott presided over the wedding of his daughter Caroline to Benjamin Harrison, who would later become the 23rd President of the United States. During his career, Scott also served as president of the Oxford Female College and as a professor at Hanover College.

Following the death of his wife, Scott lived with President Benjamin Harrison and First Lady Caroline Harrison at the White House during Harrison’s presidency. Both John Witherspoon Scott and his daughter Caroline died in 1892 at the White House, with Scott passing away in November, one month after his daughter.