William spent his formative years in Townshend, Vermont, where his father worked as a surveyor. The family later moved to Bakersfield, Vermont, and later to Newburgh, Orange County, New York.
William married Cornelia Spooner on 18 December 1839 in Kent, Connecticut. The couple had six children, three of whom died in infancy.
At some point, William must have acquired an excellent education, as, later, he worked as both a teacher and principal for schools in the Newburgh area, and, later, in Brooklyn, New York.
During his years in Newburgh, William served as principal for two private schools, including the Newburgh Free Academy and the Highland Academy, and also became the first librarian of the Newburgh Free Library, which was established on November 6, 1852 and featured 2,000 volumes.
In September 1858, Susan B. Anthony complained when William was appointed to the State Teachers' Association Music Committee. She felt that a woman should have been considered for the position instead.
In the same year, William established the Highland Academy in Newburgh. One of the most prominent boarding schools at the time, Highland Academy was opened in 1858. "The location is one of the finest in the village; and, under the thorough system of instruction adopted by its principal, the school can scarcely fail."
At the 23rd annual meeting of the New York State Teachers' Association, which was held July 1868, William N. Reid was elected the organization's president. Then, after serving as the organization's president in 1868, William became president of one of its local chapters in 1869.
By 1870, the family was living in Brooklyn, New York, where William was working as a teacher. The census of that year showed William, his wife, Cornelia, their daughter, Mary, and a single schoolteacher from Canada, Frances Webster, living in the household.
In 1871 or so, William became the principal of Brookyin's Public School 13. He was to serve in this capacity for about five years, until a major controversy resulted in his being fired from the position.
According to newspaper accounts at the time, William had a major difference of opinion with local school officials. His superiors thought that William was advancing students too quickly, and asked him to stop. William refused, and he was fired from his position. One wonders, however, if this was the real reason for firing William, as there also appeared to be a struggle over who was to control the school.
William's nemesis in this controversy was Thomas Kinsella. Thomas Kinsella was the editor of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle and served as a member of the U.S. Congress representing Brooklyn from 1871 through 1873, so he was a formidable opponent. Mr. Kinsella was instrumental in having William fired.
The Brooklyn Times of To-Day interviewed Mr. Kinsella. From the article, we learn that Mr. Kinsella was on the committee that had originally hired William. At the time of his hire, Mr. Kinsella thought that William as "presentable gentleman. Mr. Reid it was then represented had had charge of a school in Newburgh, small in comparison with Number 13, comprising say from four hundred to five hundred pupils." Mr. Kinsella went on to say "previous to that he had been, I hear, a sutler in the army and when he was in Newburgh he had had I think a fuss in a small way with the school authorities."
Mr. Kinsella complained that William had not complied with rules, and he "ran the school in his own way." Mr. Kinsella and other school board members also thought that William was too lax in how he disciplined the students.
From other newspaper accounts, it appears that William was fired without being given a chance to respond to the charges against him. There were several public meetings held after William was fired, and legislation was proposed to reform the governance of the city's school system.
Accusations were also made against Mr. Kinsella ... that he was profane, smelled of brandy, and yelled at teachers and William when visiting the school. Apparently, Mr. Kinsella also opposed having classes read the Bible and sing hymns.
The protests seemed to have little tangible results, as William was not reinstated in his position at the school, and the desired reforms never took place.
After his dismissal, William started a new private school, the Clintonian Seminary, which became a boarding and day school in Brooklyn. William apparently operated the school for a number of years before he retired.
According to a newspaper account, William died suddenly: "Wm N. Reid, aged 65 years, died suddenly at his residence, Non. 14 Butler street, last night. The Coroner has been notified and will hold an inquest tomorrow." The mortality schedule on the 1880 census indicated that the cause of death was a fatty heart.
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