Clemson University - Taps Yearbook (Clemson, SC)

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One Man ' s . . . rate of eight cents an hour. The first uni- form was of a jeans and cost $7.50. Board in the barracks was at the rate of $7.50 a month. (You have no right to jump to a conclusion because at that time a dollar had value packed into every cent) but even at that, an education could be obtained at Clemson very much more economically than at any other school in the state. Clemson College expanded enorm- ously after that first year, even more than was hoped or dreamed for. In the article written by then-president Riggs in 1923 he states: From small beginnings Clemson College has grown to be a verita- ble young giant among colleges. Its atten- dance has nearly tripled since the first year, its lands have increased from 854 to 2,364 acres, its property from about $250,000 to more than two million dollars. Its graduates number 2,085 . The number of individuals who have attended reaches over 8,000, and the number of matricula- tions over 21,000. The years since the opening of Clem- son College have seen great change. The abolition of mandatory military training, the admission of women and Electrical and mechanical engineering majors cur- rently fulfill the majority of their graduation re- quirements in Riggs Hall. The archway at the entrance to Hardin Hall still reads Chemistry - much to the confusion of many freshmen. 24 Academics

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. £ y t — t-. ■ Ml ' One Man ' s . . . In a report written by B.R. Tillman, son of Ben Tillman and a member of the first class, the opening of the college is described: The College buildings had just been completed but the incident litter and scraps of lumber, etc. were on the campus and had to be removed. Clemson College consisted at that time of the main College building, one three-story barracks, the chemical laboratory, the mechanic hall, the experiment station, the infir- mary, the dairy barn, a small horticulture building and residences for the professors, a plant comparatively small to what is there today. There had been no grading of fields or leveling off of the hillsides, and most of our drilling was done on the parade ground in front of the main college building, since planted in trees. There was in front of the main college building a huge pile of saw dust, which was hauled away by cadets who were given the privilege of working two hours a day and paid at the The first meeting of the Board of Trustees took place on the Calhoun Mansion lawn, on a spot now marked by a bronze plaque. Sikes Hall, erected in the late 1800 ' s, zvas originally the home of the Agricultural department. It later housed the school ' s library. Tillman Hall will soon be the subject of major renova- tion. The ground floor will also be restored to its original 1894 condition Academics 23

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blacks, and that big step from a college to a university have all changed the face of Clemson. What was a lot of money in 1893 has lost much of its value today. As Clem- son University prepares for its 87th year, its physical property is valued at over 125 million. And more students at- tend Clemson every year now than the total attendence from 1893 to 1923. The grand total for attendence is now over 84,878 students. Clemson University is not merely a college; it is a public institution whose research, educational, and extension services affect the entire state and much of the country and the world. One wonders what Thomas Greene Clemson would think of his creation were he to see it today. But despite all the changes, good or bad, the purposes and condi- tions set forth in Clemson ' s will still hold true today, in honor of the spirit and determination of one man and his vision for the people of South li== J Carolina. O Sikes Hall is presently the university ' s administration building, containing the offices of the President and other top university officials. Thomas Greene Clemson, founder of Clemson Agri- cultural College, is pictured seated on the porch of Fort Hill - now a national historic site. Academics 25