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This institution is the pride of the city. It originated in the
deliberations of ministers and lay representatives of the Congregational
and Presbyterian churches. A charter was obtained from legislature
in 1846. In the summer of 1847 the corner-stone was laid of the
first building. The college occupies a beautiful and commanding
site, embracing about twenty acres near the centre of the city.
On this site has been erected the middle building, devoted to
recitations and lecture-rooms; the north and south buildings
furnish rooms for students; the chapel, the first story of which
is for the preparatory department; and the memorial hall, in
which are stored the library, consisting of about seven thousand
five hundred volumes, and cabinets with mementos of the war.
The last building was erected in memoriam of nearly five hundred
of the sons of the college who were engaged in the late war for
the preservation of our National Union. The building cost about
$26,000, and was mostly contributed by the alumni and other friends
of the college. The entire property of the college is estimated
at $230,000. The average attendance of students for the past
ten years has run over two hundred annually. The institution
has justly merited a widespread fame for the thoroughness of
its mental and moral discipline, and for the breadth and practical
efficiency of its general culture. In addition to the educational
facilities offered by the college, there are three public school
buildings. The high-school building is one of the finest in the
country, costing about $35,000. It is a beautiful structure of
Milwaukee brick, three stories high above the basement, including
the attic elevation under the Mansard-roof. It stands on quite
an elevation on the west bank of the river, and commands the
finest view in the city. |