Kentucky College for Women

Kentucky College for Women
Former name
Caldwell Institute for Young Ladies (1860–1876)
Caldwell Female College (1876–1887)
Caldwell College (1887–1913)
TypePrivate women's
ActiveSeptember 1860–1930
Location
Danville
,
Kentucky
,
United States
NicknameWahpanoochis

Kentucky College for Women, also known as Caldwell College, was a non-profit private women's college and preparatory school in Danville, Kentucky. It opened as the Caldwell Institute for Young Ladies in 1860. It merged with Centre College in 1930.

History[edit]

Caldwell Institute[edit]

Caldwell Institute for Young Ladies, 1861

in 1854, the Kentucky legislature authorized a charter for the Henderson Female Institute.[1] The institute's board of trustees selected a site for its campus and began to raise funds. A four-story brick building was constructed in 1859.[2] That same year, Professor A. E. Sloan became the institute's president.[2] When the school finally opened in September 1860, it name had changed to the Caldwell Institute for Young Ladies.[2][3]

Caldwell Institute struggled to operate during the Civil War. Sloan resigned in 1864 and was replaced by Professor Augustine Hart.[2] A year later, Hart was replaced by Rev. L. G. Barbour who was the institute's president until his resignation in 1874.[2] The Second Presbyterian Church took over the school's operation in 1874.[2]

Caldwell College[edit]

The Presbyterian Church changed the institute's name to Caldwell Female College in 1876.[2] The college building was destroyed by fire in April 1876.[2] Its trustees received insurance money but could not rebuild the college.[2]

Main Building, Calwell College, Danville, Kentucky, 1898

In 1880, the trustees bought the former Danville Classical and Military Institute (now the site of Danville High School).[2] Caldwell Female College reopened at its new location in September 1881. Its campus had limited accommodation for boarding students.[4] It president was Rev. John Montgomery.[2][5] In the 1882–83 school year, the college had 130 students.[6] The college absorbed Bell Seminary, a local girl's school in 1885.[2]

Charlotte A. Campbell became the college's president in 1886, serving until 1897.[2] In early 1887, the college's name was shortened to Caldwell College.[2] Dr. John C. Ely became the its president in 1897.[2] He was succeeded by John C. Acheson in 1902.[2] Acheson expanded the college's curriculum, making it a fully accredited junior college.[2] In June 1912, the college announced that it had raised $100,000 for campus improvements.[7] Its trustees also adopted a plan for new buildings.[7]

Kentucky College for Women[edit]

East Hall, c. 1914
Gymnasium, c. 1914

On January 11, 1913, the board of trustees announced that the institution's name would change to Kentucky College for Women.[7] The college had received a gift of $57,000 ($1,541,414 in 2022 money) from Dr. Nathaniel W. Conkling on New York, as well gifts totaling $175,000 ($5,394,949 in 2022 money) from other donors.[7] The money was to help the non-profit college add buildings and grow into "one of the greatest colleges for higher education of women in the country".[7][8] Conkling's gift was earmarked for Morgan Memorial Hall, honoring his friend, Mrs. Florence Morgan, who had supported women's education.[7] He also required the name change to Kentucky College for Women as a condition of his gift.[7]

President Acheson oversaw the addition of numerous buildings to the college campus, including East Hall, Morgan Hall, and the gymnasium.[2] The Princeton Collegiate Institute of Princeton, Kentucky merged with the Kentucky College for Women in 1913.[2] Frances Simrall Riker replaced Acheson as the college's president in 1914.[2] The dean of the college in 1914 was Ruth Andrus.[8] Riker was replaced by M. Marshall Allen in 1915.[2] However, Acheson returned as the college's president in 1922.[2] By 1922, the college had expanded its curriculum to offer four years of college and a Bachelor of Arts degree.[2] Although the college seemed successful, it had financial problems.[2] Acheson left in 1925 and was replaced by Paul B. Boyd.[2]

Kentucky College for Women operated as a department of Centre College in 1926; it officially merged with Centre College in 1930 and operated as its women's division.[2] In January 1962, the Centre campus became coed, resulting int the closure of the former Kentucky College for Women campus.[2] Centre College maintains an archive of the records from Caldwell College and the Kentucky College for Women.[9]

Campus[edit]

Caldwell College was located in Danville, Kentucky on the site of today's Danville High School.[2][10] Its main building was West Hall.[10] The campus also included a small chapel designed by architect J. R. Carrigan in 1882.[10][11] In 1882, the college could accommodate forty boarding students.[6] A gymnasium was added in 1911.[12] It included a basketaball court, a bowling alley, and a swimming pool.[8] The campus was expanded to include East Hall which included dormitory rooms and a dining hall.[13][14][8] Morgan Hall was added around 1914; it house the college's library.[8][15] The campus also featured an aesthetic garden.[16]

Morgan Hall, East Hall, and West Hall of Kentucky College for Women, Danville, Kentucky, c. 1914

Academics[edit]

Before 1902, the college's curriculum focused on high school education and a college preparatory certificate.[2][8] In 1902, it was also an accredited junior college.[2] Its junior college coursework included English, history, Latin, mathematics, modern languages, and sciences.[8] Students also had a choice of electives, including art and music.[8] The music department taught harmony, music history, music theory, and instruction in the pianoforte, violin, and vocal performance.[8] The college included a two-year program in home economics, with related classrooms and laboratories.[8] The college began offering four years of college education and a B.A. degree in 1922.[2]

Student life[edit]

May Day Celebration, Kentucky College for Women, c. 1914

Caldwell College encouraged its students to participate in sports, including field hockey, soccer, and tennis.[8] The college also had a Wahpanoochis intramural basketball team.[17] In addition, there was the Caldwell College Broom Brigade, consisting of twenty members which drilled with brooms and a drummer.[16] The students also participated in theatrical productions.[18] Caldwell College had a chapter of Kappa Delta from June 1907 to 1908.

The Kentucky College for Women hosted an Artist Series that brought vocalists and instrumental artists to perform for the students.[8] A dietitian to oversee the students' meals.[8]

An alumnae association was established in 1882, during a reunion of graduates of Calwell Female Institute.[5]

Notable people[edit]

Alumnae[edit]

Board of Trustees[edit]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Act to Incorporate the Henderson Female Institute of Danville (1854)". Centre College. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae "Kentucky College for Women". CentreCyclopedia. Centre College. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  3. ^ Caldwell Institute for Young Ladies Catalog 1860-1861. Louisville: Hull & Brothers, Printers, 1861. via Centre College Digital Archives.
  4. ^ "Calfwell Female College". The Danville Tribune. 1882-06-23. p. 2. Retrieved 2024-03-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ a b "Caldwell Institute Alumnae Reunion". The Danville Tribune. 1882-06-23. p. 5. Retrieved 2024-03-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ a b "Caldwell Female College". Kentucky Advocate. Danville, Kentucky. 1883-08-10. p. 4. Retrieved 2024-03-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g "Kentucy College for Women". Kentucky Advocate. Danville, Kentucky. 1913-01-13. p. 1. Retrieved 2024-03-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m The Kentucky College for Women. Danville, Kentucky: Kentucky College for Women. 1914 – via Internet Archive.
  9. ^ "Kentucky College for Women | Digital Archives". Centre College. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  10. ^ a b c "Caldwell College campus | Digital Archives". Centre College. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  11. ^ "Boyle County". Interior Journal. Stanford, Kentucky. 1882-07-11. p. 2. Retrieved 2024-03-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ "KCW gymnasium construction | Digital Archives". Centre College. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  13. ^ "KCW dining room | Digital Archives". Centre College. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  14. ^ "KCW dormitory room | Digital Archives". Centre College. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  15. ^ "KCW library | Digital Archives". Centre College. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  16. ^ a b "An Aesthetic Concert and Broom Drill". The Courier-Journal. Louisville, Kentucky. 1884-04-06. p. 6. Retrieved 2024-03-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ "Caldwell College basketball team, 1907 | Digital Archives". Centre College. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  18. ^ "Drama production, 1912 | Digital Archives". Centre College. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
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