Clemson University - Taps Yearbook (Clemson, SC)

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In the northwestern corner of South Coroli no , a Imost at the upper limit of the Piedmont Belt, and lying partly in Oconee county and partly in Pickens, there is an estate - some thirteen hundred acres - of forest and farm. This estate is to-day the scene of immense activ- ity, since here it is that the boys of South Carolina are being fitted to assume their share in increasing indus- trial activity of their State; and here it is, also, that they are learning that obedience to authority, and that regard for a and order v hich are prime essentials in good citizenship; for it is on this land that Clemson Agricultural and Mechanical College stands and grov s year by year, rapidly making itself one of the indispensible among the educational institutions of the State. The idea of a college like Clemson had its begin- ning in the great Farmers ' Alliance movement of 1886, when the farmers began to see the need of agricul- tural education in order to fully develop the great resources of the State. The will of Thomas G. Clemson, probated in 1888, gave in trust to the State of South Carolina the old homestead of John C. Calhoun, to- gether with about $60,000 in securities, for the found- ing and maintaining of the Clemson Agricultural Col- lege - thus exactly carrying out the farmers ' idea. In 1889, The General Assembly accepted Mr. Clemson ' s bequest, and chartered the college; and in 1890, the Trustees began the work of building. The doors of Clemson College were first opened to students on July 6th, 1893. The main building was burned in May, 1894, but this was not allowed to interfere with recitations; so that, with the exception of the annual vacations, the college has been in con- tinuous operation si nee the first year, being now just in process of rounding out its fourteenth session, with more than four hundred graduates to its credit. graduates who are to-day holding important posi - tions in almost every department of industry. The object of Mr. Clemson ' s bequest was, primarily, the establishment of an agricultural college; but the demand for education and training along other lines has made it necessary to supply other departments. With the present equipment the college affords six four-year courses each leading to the degree of B.S.: Agriculture; Agriculture and Animal Industry; Metal- lurgy and Geology; Mechanical and Electrical En- gineering; Civil Engineering; Textile Industry. Each of these courses, while specializing thoroughly in the direction its name indicates, is yet broad enough in scope to give an excellent grounding in English, His- tory, and Political Economy , thus giving the student as many advantages of a liberal education as the necessary limited time will allow. The only tax used in keeping up the college is that levied on fertilizers, a tax that, from its nature, is de- rived from all sections of the State; and that has never become a perceptible burden. Though the income from this source is considerable, it still leaves no large margin for the great expenditures that must need be made in supporting such an institution. For this is no ordinary college where books and board are the main requisites: Clemson is a small municipality in itself, exercising all the functions of a city government, from the building of roads and streets, to the supplying of water, sewerage, heat, light, and power. While Clemson must exist, it must also grow to meet the yearly increasing demands upon it. The fact that more than two hundred South Carolina boys were last year denied admittance for lack of room shows the need for this grov 4h. TAPS 1907 Behind the amphitheatre was the old reflection pool. When the new library was built, the pool was replaced by a new, much larger fountain. This statue of Thomas Green Clemson stands in front of Tillman Hall. First made of white marble, it was later replaced by a statue cast in bronze. 10

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. f lMMfll Shots of the old greenhouse in 1923 (top) and 1932 show its position below Tillman Hall and next to the Chemistry Building. Students used it to house various agricul- tural experiments. 12