Illinois College - Rig Yearbook (Jacksonville, IL)

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5'g3fg,f1gr r filllinois College--Tlferoic emo Tlfistoric -M5 . A band of young students at Yale College, New Haven, Connecticut, i during the school year of 1898, conceived tl1e plan of establishing in the west a college of liberal arts and Christian culture and volunteered to carry it into effect. There were seven of them --a perfect and sacred number. Do not for- get their names, or fail to remember what they planned and l1ow through those early yea1's they struggled heroically to make real their vision of a col- ' lege of Christian learning, in the formative period of the industrial and political history of the great commonwealth of Illinois. Here are their names: Mason Grosvenor, Theron Baldwin, John F. Brooks. Elisha Jenney, William Kirby, AsaTurner, and Julian M. Sturtevant. They were students in the Theological department of Yale College, and planned to come west as home missionaries. Their foundation for success and permanency was laid thus J early in the establishment of the Christian college Previous to that time, Rev. John M. Ellis, a Presbyterian minister, came west under the direction of the American Home Missionary Society,-came to Illinois-a. messenger inspired and sent of God to cry throughout the land Prepare ye the way for the incoming population, that will flood these ricl1 prairies by building churches, schools and colleges. For two years, 1826-28, amid otl1er duties, he was maturing a plan fora seminary of learning and was exploring tl1e counties of Randolph, Bond, Madison, Greene and other counties for the best location. Tl11'Ol1,9,'l1l'l16 press, in tl1e pulpit, at the fireside, with un- flagging zeal he pressed tl1e question, How shall the means of education be furnished to meet the wants of this growing stale? In Bond County, where tl1e first Presbyterian church organized in tl1e state, was located, he found sympathy and awakened interest, and efforts were made to locate the seminary tl1ere. He had a co-laborer in the person of T. Lippincott, who, one day dining with Judge Lockwood of Edwards- ville, afterwards of Jacksonville, and Dr. Todd of Springlield, was advised to suggest to Mr. Ellis the wisdom of inspecting the new counties of Morgan and Sangamon before tl1e location should be decided upon. The

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nlg Veba 9' 6 Vol. I2 result was that Messrs. Ellis and Lippincott visited Jacksonville and began tl1e Work of college construction, iirst by the selection of College Hill as the site and the appointment of a soliciting committee. They secured 33,000- Then came forward. the Yale Band, offering to furnish the proposed insti- tution the sum of 8l0,000, provided the previous subscribers would consent to certain modifications of their plans, deemed by the Yale men necessary to the permanent prosperity of tl1e institution. The subscribers were seen personally and the written consent of every one of them was obtained to tl1e proposed modification of the plan to which they subscribed on certain conditions. A Board of Trustees was organized in January, 1829, as follows: Hon. Samuel D- Lockwood, who served until 1868 William C. Posey. who served until 1849 John P. Wilkinson, who served until 1841 Rev. Theron Baldwin, who served until 1870 Rev. John F. Brooks, Rev. Mason Grosvenor, who served until 1833 Rev. Elisha J enney, who served until 1870 Rev. Williain Kirby. who served until 1851 Rev: Julian M. Sturtevant, who served until 1831 S,,,,.,,,,.,,,,, HM, H ll Rev. Asa Turner, who served until 1844. It will be seen that with the exception of tl1e first three, all were of the original Yale Band, and were ministers. , In January, 1830, in the completed building, now known as Beecher Hall, with nine students and Rev. Julian M. Sturtevant, sole instructor, college life of Illinois College began. The next year Rev. Edward Beecher, son of Lyman Beecher, and brother of Henry Wa.rd Beecher, became President. He occu- pied that position for fourteen years and was succeeded in 1844 by Dr. J. M.