Isaac Norton Rendall

Isaac Norton Rendall (September 30, 1825 – November 15, 1912) was an American Presbyterian minister and academic administrator. He served as president of Lincoln University for forty-one years (1865–1906).

Early life and education

Isaac Norton Rendall was born in Utica, New York, on September 30, 1825. He had five siblings. He graduated from Princeton University in 1852 and from Princeton Theological Seminary in 1855 and received his ordination as a Presbyterian minister in 1860. He subsequently received a doctorate of divinity from Lafayette College in 1870. He served as stated supply first of the church of Oneida Valley, New York, from 1858 to 1864 and of the church of Emporium, Pennsylvania, from 1864 to 1865.

Lincoln University presidency

Rendall became president of the Ashmun Institute, later renamed Lincoln University after the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, in 1865. Following his retirement, he continued to live on campus and teach evangelism and polemics at the school. His records are held in the Cooperative HBCU Archival Survey Project, including a book he wrote about Lincoln University.