Due West Female College - Arrow Yearbook (Due West, SC)

Page 192 text:

most far-reaching work was his success in having the college transferred from the con- trol of the stock company to the Synod of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church. The institution had been maintained largely by the churchg now it was to be a denom- inational school owned and controlled by the church. It was at the time of this trans- fer in 190-1 that the name was changed from Due' Ufest Female College to PVoman's College of Due Wvesf. I Of Dr. and llilrs. Richard Lee Robinson, now President and Dean, respec- tively, of the college, it is not necessary to speak. All the Associate Reformed Pres- byterians, indeed many in other denominations, know of their work. VVith no en- dowment, little financial aid from the denomination, with the continued rise in prices of everything, they have labored cheerfully and indefatigably. New departments have been added and the standard raised to satisfy requirements of the Association of Southern Colleges. The burden of the administrative work has been theirs: our ap- preciation and praise should also be theirs. In 1915 the much needed Alumnae Building was ready for use. This, a gift largely of the alumnae of the college, contains the auditorium, practice rooms, music studios and art studios. Quoting Dr. D. G. Phillips, in an address delivered September, 1910: No arithmetic of earth, eternity alone can reveal the debt our church owes the VVoman's College. Struggling for six years against poverty and poor equipment, she has held a place with other splendidly equipped colleges of our land. A list of the names of those connected with the VVoman's College, both professors and students, is a list of which any institution might be proud. Among the professors there are: Dr. J. 1. Bonner, Professor P. Kennedy, Dr. Jas. Boyce, lVIrs. L. 111. Bonner, Nlrs. K. P. Kennedy, Bliss lN'IcQuerens, llrs. E. C. Stuart, Bliss llflildred C. VVatkins, lVIrs. VV. B. Lindsay, Mrs. Jennie E. Bonner and others not less dear to students of former days. Over one thousand graduates have gone out to every part of our country. A large number have found their work in Egypt, Rlexico, Japan, India, China, and Korea. The VVoman's College has a record of which she may be proud. It is for the students of today to see that her record is not sullied, her honor not stained. -Tl l il ...J Page Seventy-four

Page 191 text:

Il 1 1: 7--W ------1-H---...-,. ,A Womanis College of Due West O I T was in the year 1859 that a few men first conceived the idea of establishing 'F O ' - ' 5 I TC? a school where young women of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church might receive adequate training under decidedly Christian influence. For i ,f our Presbyterian forefathers, intellectual training and spiritual development .id L went hand in hand. li-' In the fall of 1859 during a session of Presbytery at Newberry, S. C., Revs. J. I. Bonner, R. C. Grier, C. Galloway pledged five hundred dollars each for this enterprise. Their example had its influence on others and in November of the same year at Due West it was decided that the school in Due West under the charge of Bliss lVIcQuerns be taken over and a female college established. This was ac- cordingly done. Since the three room building was not competent for the needs of the new school, a seven acre tract, where the college now stands, was purchased and a canvass for money instituted. The work was discouraging: money came in slowly. After a time, however, the corner stone of the brick building, the present Blain Build- ing, was laid. In January, 1860, the first session of the College opened with the following fac- ulty: Rev. J. I. Bonner, President, Rev. J. C. Galloway, lNIiss lNIcQuerens and lyliss lVIcBride. The course of study prescribed was a good one and adequate for the needs of the time. But the new College was lacking in equipment. There were only five recitation rooms, these unplastered: no stairway to the second floor: one second-hand piano: no libraryg no laboratory, and no dormitory for the students. Due honor and praise should be given the founders who. in spite of debt and discouragement, stood by and supported the new College. The first Commencement. occurring July 8, 1861, was held in the church, the first graduating class consisted of five young women. It was during Dr. Bonner's administration that the XVar of Secession which swept away so many of our Southern Colleges was fought. Because of the heavy debt which the Trustees in the impoverished state of the country found themselves unable to pay, it was necessary to change the form of ownership. In 1867 a joint stock com- pany was organized which took over the college, paid the indebtedness, and added some necessary equipment. Dr. Bonner's administration extended over a period of twenty-two years to 1881. This administration cannot be better characterized than by the words of another: Dr. Bonner was preeminently the man for the hour and at last won out in face of all desperate odds and planted the college on firm grounds. After the death of Dr. Bonner, Professor J. P. Kennedy, who for a number of years had been Professor in Erskine College, was unanimously chosen President. He associated with himself lllrs. K. P. Kennedy and lNIrs. L. NI. Bonner, both of whom had been connected with the college prior to this. The old church was purchased for a dormitory, thus enabling the college to accommodate a greater number of boarding students. In 1887 when, on account of ill health, it became necessary for Professor Kennedy to give up the work. llrs. L. BI. Bonner was chosen President and served most successfully until 1895. For the four succeeding years Rev. C. E. Todd was President. Although handicapped by disease, Nlr. Todd was a man of unbounded energy and aspiration and during his regime notable progress was made. In 1900 Rev. James Boyce assumed control of the college. During this administration the curriculum of the institution was broadened and the standard raised. The Carnegie Dormitory erected in 1908 is a monument to his endeavor, but perhaps Dr. Boyce's Page Srl enly three

Page 193 text:

, Y Q I 3 5 Y , I 1 , I I 3 w I , - 1839 ' ',4j', 'L.,,g,1-::f:, ' vi - -. K Y fs 1 ,.11':vws ,.v N- X, , , f4 -, , 1 , 1 ' r . Y Y X P N ., -- V U J ,T x, mx - - 14 ish . X 3' ii' 1 - . if i ' ' '7 - ' - ,, , T :iff 'Y 4 -3 F :Sv .Lf . ' -- Tl X U? 3: ,, H , X X., ,igw 4 ,, ' - ,4 . egwfi? J. W '-95f?'i4 2'1'v:'f'W '5 7 : ' !!F. f .i. .- 'HJ xillwtbleu' ,- 9. ,. - 3-'if :'f12 . .f-'ff - -A - - - if 7 iff-'gli-fill'-' .4 :Ear 5 'F5C'+n gziin -J A L1i.El5:e'l'E?'2: .fiiiurswg -- ' J ' . ' J P - N ' - ,Q X- Q- '. was - - -- 4: --... - f-- -f .- .- -bggfflji- -H-iw , 'fi A M, -Ns.1-:-15ig::5,jf:T':::-+ff-p:iw- , xt.-I-g,..,.,,i Qs:1gf '1..g 15: ,555 N ,. Q ,, '-if: ' ' : g ,,.fVf 1920 W I l Page Seventy-fave I J