Index
Scholarships
The Fred L. Emerson Foundation Scholarship
The Fred L. Emerson Foundation Scholarship was established in 1986 by the Emerson Foundation, located in Auburn, N.Y.
Fred Light “F.L.” Emerson was born on a farm in Lexington, Mass. After graduating from high school at age 16, he worked as an office manager for a prominent Boston shoe manufacturer, James Means & Co., earning $2 a week. By age 20, F.L. had become a “cub” superintendent of W.H. McElwain Shoe Company. He moved to Auburn, N.Y., in 1904 to work for the Dunn and McCarthy shoe firm, where his accumulated knowledge of business and the shoe industry helped him to rise quickly through the ranks to his eventual presidency of the company. In 1935, he made history by becoming the first person to make a commercial trip around the world, traveling some 53,000 miles by plane, boat and train.
Known for his personal generosity, he created the Fred L. Emerson Foundation in 1932 to support the communities in which his company conducted business. In the 1950s, the Foundation shifted its focus to support colleges and universities, as well as sustaining its ongoing commitment to the Auburn community and regional organizations. Fred L. Emerson died in 1948 at age 72, less than a year after retiring from Dunn and McCarthy. His favorite quote, often attributed to Benjamin Franklin, was “I’m a great believer in luck. The harder I work, the more of it I seem to have.”
Other family members associated with the College are Fred’s great-granddaughter, Lori Emerson Robinson, Class of 1990, and her husband Philip D. Robinson, Class of 1982.
June 2014
Please note: The named scholarships profiled on these pages are awarded as part of the College’s need-based financial aid packages. These funds help ensure the Hamilton Promise of keeping education affordable through meeting a student’s full demonstrated financial need.
Materials published here were diligently researched and written by students who strived for historical accuracy.
