February 13, 1937
THE STATE
Page Three
A Century at Davidson
STARTED in 18117, Davidson this year
will celebrate its hundredth anniversary.
The history of the institution has been
one of steady progress.
NORTH Carolina i* fast becoming
“anniversary-minded,” one of the
Hollar anniversaries billed for
Ihi* year Win? lha celebration of the
ono hundredth anniversary of the
founding of Davidion College.
It i« in March, to bo exact, that Da¬
vidson celebrate* her birthday but the
centennial celebration will center
around Commencement Week, when an
elaborate program with many promi¬
nent speaker* will bo presented.
On thie occasion, graduates of
former year* will Rather nt “the *ehool
bouae,” a» they affectionately allude to
their beloved Alma Mater. Many of
them hare become fumoui while
ноте
of them are just “folks.” Hut what¬
ever their station, when they Rather
together at this unusual Commence¬
ment week, they will be merely "the
boys” again, recalling happy incident»
of college days.
A Glorious History
Though the history of Davidson has
not been a spectacular one, it ha* been
a glorious one. with a promising future
ahead. Davidson holds the unique po¬
sition of being the only college within
an area of 150,000 square mile* with
ns high a rating as can bo given it by
the Educational Association of Amer¬
ica, the Association of American Col¬
lege* and the Association of Colleges
in Southern Slates.
The college of today, with its faculty
of approximately fifty and its student
body of more than fire hundred, is a
far cry from the Davidson of a century
ago, with its faculty of three and it*
student body of 65.’ No; her history
ha» not been spectacular hut she ha*
gone down through the years with a
quiet dignity, exerting an incalculable
influence on the thousands of graduates
who have resided within her Christian
walls, and performing an ever faithful
service to the state, the South and the
nation.
Tho meeting of the Concord Presby¬
tery, held at Prospect Church in March
1835, was an important event in the
history of Davidson for it was here
By MAJEI. IVEY SEAY
The new Chambers, or administration
building at Davidson.
that the idea of the institution was
born. According to tradition, a black¬
board bearing this announcement was
placed outside the session house:
"After the adjournment of
Presbytery, a meeting will be held
in this room to establish, with the
blessing of God, an institution of
learning to bring the benefits of
education within the reach of poor
boys of the community and pre¬
paratory to the Gospel Ministry."
The meeting was held and a commit¬
tee was appointed to select a site for
the proposed institution. They failed
to agree so a second committee was ap¬
pointed, which recommended that the
college be located in the uorlhcrn part
of Mecklenburg County on land to be
bought at a reasonable price from Wil¬
liam Lee Davidson.
Though the institution was to be un¬
der the control of the Concord Presby¬
tery, it was to bo non-seetarian and
open to persons of good morn) charac-
tcr of all denomination- and was to
offer "an accomplished classical edu¬
cation."
Davidson was first organised a* a
manual labor seminary. All students
were require,) to do a «'Main amount
of manual labor in order to diminish
lie expense of obtaining an education
and also to promote good health.
The doors of the college were formal¬
ly opened in March. IS37 and the in¬
stitution was name,! in honor of Gen¬
eral William
I»
Davidson of Revo¬
lutionary fame, from whom the land
was bought. Dr. Robert Hall Morrison
«a- named as its first president.
When the college first opened, board
was $6 a month or 830 a *e«*ion. no
room rent or fuel fee being required.
Students were divided into three dasse*
of labor according to their physical
strength. Those in the first class could
receive a reduction of 815 a action in
their board; those of tho second claw
a 112 reduction and the weakest a re¬
duction of $9. Thus it was possible
for an able-bodied man to receive the
be<l education available for 845 a year,
including tuition.
Fifteen dollars a session tuition was
charged those studying the sciences and
the language* while #10 a session was
charged those taking the regular aca¬
demic course.
At the beginning, there were eight
buildings, three dormitories for stu¬
dents, two homes for professors, a stew¬
ard's home ami a chapel, the second
story of which contained recitation
rooms. Two of the students dormi¬
tories. Oak and Elm Row, are still in
use. Four men occupied each room.
When additional buildings were built
and filled, the students were given per¬
mission to build shacks for their own
use. these to lie add when they left the
college.
The year was divided into two
«»-
-ion* of five months each, with August
and February as vacation months. The
hoard-house wa* in charge of a Stew¬
ard, and a farmer wa* engaged to di-
(Continued on pag * sixit/ n)
