Index
Scholarships
The Couper Family Scholarship
The Couper Family Scholarship was established by Esther Watrous Couper, widow of Edgar W. Couper, Class of 1920, and augmented by her son, Richard Watrous Couper, Class of 1944, and his wife, Patricia Pogue Couper.
The Couper and Watrous families have been a significant part of the Hamilton community extending back almost to its founding. Direct lineage can be traced to Charles Avery, Class of 1820, who served as professor of chemistry on the Hill. (By June 1999, the Couper and Watrous families included 21 Hamilton and Kirkland alumni, of whom eight were elected to Phi Beta Kappa, three became Trustees, four received honorary degrees, five were faculty members, and one served as acting president of the College). In March 2000, Esther Watrous Couper established the Couper Family Fund in recognition of the scholarship support the College had provided for her husband, Edgar Williams Couper, Class of 1920, and her son-in-law, Joseph B. Watrous, Jr., Class of 1942.
Her son Richard “Dick” W. Couper, Class of 1944, was born in Binghamton, New York. During his years on College Hill, he was a member of the Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity and the debate team, played varsity basketball and soccer, and participated on the varsity track team. In 1942, Dick admirably left the College to serve in the U.S. Army. After being discharged as a Captain in 1946, he resumed his studies. That same year, he married Patricia “Pasty” Pogue, a Smith College graduate. Upon the occasion of his commencement from Hamilton (Phi Beta Kappa and with honors in Greek and history), he received the prestigious James Soper Merrill Prize, presented annually to that graduating senior “who, in character and influence, has best typified the highest ideals of the College.” After earning a master’s degree in history from Harvard University, Dick pursued a career in the insurance industry. He eventually became president of the New York Public Library. One of the College’s most beloved and prominent supporters, Dick was elected as a Hamilton Trustee in 1959 and served in that capacity until his death in 2006. He was also appointed acting president of the College from 1966 to 1968. His beloved wife, Patsy, remained a fervent Hamiltonian until her own death in 2014.
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.
