Purdue University - Debris Yearbook (West Lafayette, IN)

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Buchanan upon the grounds that it contained features which he beheved to be unconstitutional. Mr. Morrill, how- ever, was not to be defeated. Through the assistance of Senator Wade, of Ohio, he finally succeeded in having the bill introduced in the Senate, where, though bitterly opposed, it was finally passed on May 5, 1862. It was accepted by the House soon afterward, and July 2, 1862, received the signature of President Lincoln and became a law. Indiana was quick to accept the provisions of this act On March 6, 1865, the formal acceptance by the State was made. In accordance with the provisions contained, which granted each State 30,000 acres of land for every Senator and Representative to which that State was entitled, following the census of i860, Indiana came into possession of a tract of 390,000 acres as her share. From this source, through investments in U. S. bonds, she real- ized for her institution the sum of $340,000, which has remained ever since as a permanent endowment, the interest of which has always yielded a large portion of the institution ' s support. Immediately following the State ' s accept- ance, a board composed of five trustees was appointed, whose duties were to provide for the management of the school and act as its special superv One of the primary ques was the location of the institu- up among the advantageous 1869 that the question was great pressure brought to bear John Purdue and the citizens pute finally terminated in the the location of the institution the institution received a sum a donation of one hundredacres West Lafayette, a donation nf County, together with nunur- of its appreciation, the State John Purdue as a life memlicr agreed to call the institution tions which confronted the State tion. A great rivalry sprang places, and it was not until finally decided. Owing to the through the propositions of of Tippecanoe County, the dis- acceptance of their offers and in this county. By this action of $150,000 from John Purdue, of land from the citizens of $50,000 from Tippecanoe ous minor gifts, and, as a mark Legislature accordingly elected of the board of trustees and Tliis fixed the name and place. In 1870 the board of trustees was reorganized and increased from five members to nine. The work which lay before them was of a formulative nature. A site for the University had to be chosen, buildings erected, and provisions made for the opening of the institution. The present tract of land — now the well-kept campus, but, at that time, a bare, treeless field — was purchased and put in condition for the buildings. The first of these to appear were the Ladies ' Hall, Pharmacy Building, Men ' s Dormitory, Boiler House, Military Hall and bam ; these were constructed during the years 1872 and 1873. It was the original intention to open the institution in 1873 with Prof. Richard Owen, of the State University, as president, but difficulties arose prior to that time which necessitated the date being postponed. In March, 1874,

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HE world ' s great institutions of learning stand in history as mile-posts along the highwa v of education, pointing out to all the trend of civilization. The Ancient Order of Stoics, the medieval school of the monastery and the modem university stand as representative epochs in the evolution of knowledge. Even in the last epoch itself, there has been a noticeable change, the early School of Classics being replaced, or at least accompanied, by the School of Practical Arts. This constant change, this certain development along the line of science has been but a natural outgrowth of those series of inventions which have revolutionized modem times. To-day the universities of technology, science and agriculture share with the colleges of arts, letters and law the wealth and respect of everA civilized land. As a result of this modem spirit have come a score of our finest institutions, among which, as a striking example, stands Purdue University. The early history of Purdue is quite similar to other State schools nationally endowed. Previous to. i860, the federal Government was besieged by constant appeals from the agricultural societies of -the nation for donations of the unclaimed public lands to be used in the furtherance of agricultural arts. This demand was finally presented in Congress by Justin S. Morrill in what was known as the Land Grant Bill. The object embodied in this bill was to grant certain public lands to each State accepting the act for the endowment, support and maintenance of at least one college, where the leading object shall be, without excluding other scientific and classical studies, and including military- tactics, to teach such branches of learning as are related to agriculture and mechanic arts. The bill was passed in the House of Representatives April 22, 1858, but was vetoed by President

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before instruction had begun, President Owen resigned. In order to comply with the Act of Congress, however, which required that the institution be opened as early as July, 1874, Prof. John S. Hougham assembled a class March 2 of that year, and gave instructions until June. The formal opening of the institution took place Sep- tember 17, 1874, with A. C. Shortridge as president, and from that date its regular work of instruction has con- tinued unbroken. The first curriculum included courses in Science, Engineering, Agriculture and Military Tactics, drill in the latter being instituted in 1876. It was found soon afterward, however, that changes in the work were necessary — a large proportion of the students were only in the Preparatory School — and for several years a constant remodel- ing was carried on among the several courses. Like many other institutions, its infant life was beset with numer- erous days when life and interest seemed by their absence to threaten its future development. The presidency oi Dr. E. E. White, which lasted from the resignation of President Shortridge on November 5, 1875, to the election of Dr. James H. Smart in 1883, was filled with days of care and constant watchfulness, but that loyalty of purpose which characterized his term of service secured for Purdue a sure and enduring foothold. In 1877 the University Hall was completed, and in 1879, through the generosity of Mr. Martin L. Pierce, of Lafayette, the Conservatory was erected. These buildings were followed in 1881 by the construction of the Agri- cultural Building, now known as the Experiment Station. The maintenance of all these buildings had to be provided for by the State, and several times during the early life of the institution this duty was so completely overlooked by the Legislature that a serious paucity of funds threw the school into dire distress. In order to satisfy the growing needs of the Mechanical Department, the Legis- lature, in 1885, appropriated $12,500 for the erection of a building to be devoted to this cause. The building which resulted is the present Science Hall. In all departments the school soon began to grow rapidly; the new schools of Agriculture, Pharmacy and Engineering were added and the courses established on a broader basis. No sooner, however, would one department have its needs sup- plied than cries would arise from some other quarter which had outgrown its funds. The extended and profitable work of the Agri- cultural Experiment Station was rewarded by the passage of the Hatch Act in 1887, by which a sum of $15,000 per annum was appro- priated to be used by the State in furthering the work of agricultural research and investigation, and in diffusing among the farmers of Indiana the practical results obtained. In 1889 the Electrical Department received its special appropri- ation for the construction of the Electrical Building, which it has continued to occupy up to the present time.