173 Years of Theses at Williams College
Because Martin Townsend (Class of 1833) "preserved a good reputation" for three years following graduation he was "entitled to the degree of Master of Arts, by a seasonable application to the President." Although a thesis was not required to be considered for a Williams M.A., we're pleased Townsend saw fit to donate a written reflection of his "good reputation". His is the College Archives' oldest Williams thesis. Titled Prejudice, it was written as Townsend completed his law studies in 1836.
Williams College Archives Sample from Frederick C. Ferry's 1894 thesis. The first Williams thesis was written in 1836 by Martin Townsend By 1887, a master's degree candidate was required to pass a special examination or submit "a satisfactory paper, literary, philosophical, or scientific." No more than a handful of Williams graduates produced theses at this time. The Archives curates, however, a host of intriguing titles such as: The economics of railway signaling (1931), The reserve association: a central bank proposed for the United States (1911), and The psychology of sport (1908).
A curricular development proposed in 1936 gave birth to the undergraduate thesis at Williams. Among the Class of 1938, 31 students were the first to complete their undergraduate honors work by writing a thesis. That year Williams men wrote on subjects as disparate as American women as portrayed by American women writers, the treatment of muscular dystrophy, and American foreign policy in the Far East.
Today an average of 124 Williams undergraduates produce theses each year, with topics as diverse as those of the 1930s. Each thesis is cataloged in FRANCIS, and a hardcopy maintained in the College Archives. (An additional hardcopy of a science thesis resides in the Schow Science Library.) Today the thesis author and faculty adviser are also given the opportunity to provide access to a digitized version of their work. Visit to see some of the best work our students are capable of.
Williams College Archives Sample from Frederick C. Ferry's 1894 thesis. The first Williams thesis was written in 1836 by Martin Townsend A curricular development proposed in 1936 gave birth to the undergraduate thesis at Williams. Among the Class of 1938, 31 students were the first to complete their undergraduate honors work by writing a thesis. That year Williams men wrote on subjects as disparate as American women as portrayed by American women writers, the treatment of muscular dystrophy, and American foreign policy in the Far East.
Today an average of 124 Williams undergraduates produce theses each year, with topics as diverse as those of the 1930s. Each thesis is cataloged in FRANCIS, and a hardcopy maintained in the College Archives. (An additional hardcopy of a science thesis resides in the Schow Science Library.) Today the thesis author and faculty adviser are also given the opportunity to provide access to a digitized version of their work. Visit to see some of the best work our students are capable of.