Marietta in Washington County, Ohio — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
Muskingum Academy / Marietta College
1797 / 1835
— Birth of Higher Education in Ohio —
Muskingum Academy 1797
Birth of Higher Education in Ohio
In April 1797, a committee of Marietta citizens, led by General Rufus Putnam, met to establish an academy suitable for preparatory instruction for their youth. Muskingdum Academy, completed late that year, became the first institution of its kind in the Northwest Territory, providing “classical instruction . . . in the higher branches of an English education.” Its first instructor was David Putnam, a 1793 Yale graduate. The building also served as the home of the Congregationalist Church until 1808. Growing and expanding with Ohio’s first city, the academy served Marietta’s educational needs for more than 30 years as the forerunner of Marietta College.
Marietta College 1835
Founded as a non-denominational Christian college, Marietta College has its roots in several predecessor institutions, in Marietta, beginning in 1797 with Muskingum Academy. In 1832, a committee of Marietta citizens led by Dr. S.P. Hildreth chartered the Marietta Collegiate Institute and Western Teachers’ Seminary as an outgrowth of Reverend Luther G. Bingham’s 1830 Institute of Education. When it opened in 1835, Marietta College boasted a faculty of five professors and offered a full collegiate course of instruction in moral and intellectual philosophy, Greek, Latin, mathematics, physics, rhetoric, and political economy. Professor Israel W. Andrews led the college as its president from 1855 to 1885; the geological work of his brother, Professor Ebenezer B. Andrews, laid the foundation for the college’s lasting impact on the field of petroleum engineering. Erwin Hall, built in 1845-1850, is the oldest building on campus.
Erected 2003 by Ohio Bicentennial Commission, International Paper Company Foundation and Ohio Historical Society. (Marker Number 13-84.)
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Education. In addition, it is included in the Ohio Historical Society / The Ohio History Connection series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1797.
Location. 39° 25.06′ N, 81° 27.046′ W. Marker is in Marietta, Ohio, in Washington County. Marker is at the intersection of Putnam Street and 5th Street, on the right when traveling east on Putnam Street. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Marietta OH 45750, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Mills House (within shouting distance of this marker); The President’s Home of Marietta College (within shouting distance of this marker); Betsey Mills Club (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); First Baptist Church (about 500 feet away); Mound Square (about 700 feet away); House of Seven Porches (about 800 feet away); On This Site (approx. 0.2 miles away); Unitarian Church (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Marietta.
Also see . . . 1876 Historical Sketch of Marietta College. Internet Archive website entry:
Excerpt:
COURSE OF INSTRUCTION
The course of instruction occupies four years. The college year is divided into two terms or sessions.
FRESHMAN CLASS. First Term—Livy (Lincoln’s); Latin Testament; Herodotus; Algebra (Loomis’); History; Elementary Rhetoric. Second Term—Horace (Odes, Satires and Epistles); Latin Testament; Latin Prose Composition; Xenophon’s Memorabilia; Geometry (Chauvenet’s); Elementary Rhetoric. During the year: Written Translations, Compositions, Declamations.
SOPHOMORE CLASS. First Term—Cicero de Senectute, and the Captives of Plautus; Plato’s Apology and Crito; Greek Testament; Greek Prose Composition (Boise’s); Plane Trigonometry; Mensuration; Surveying; Navigation (Loomis’); Physiology (Hooker’s). Second Term—The Select Letters of Pliny, and the Aldephi of Terrence; The prometheus of Æschylus; Greek Testament; French; Spherical Trigonometry (Loomis’); Analytical Geometry (Howison’s); Differential and Integral Calculus (Loomis’). During the year: Compositions, Declamations.
JUNIOR CLASS. First Term—Quintilian, book tenth; The Agricola of Tacitus; Orations of Demosthenes; Greek Testament; German; Mechanics; Astronomy; Rhetoric (Whately’s). Second Term—Thucydides; Greek Testament; Natural Philosophy; Astronomy; Guizot’s History of Civilization; Psychology; History of English Literature. During the year: Compositions and Original Declamations.
SENIOR CLASS. First Term—Logic; Political Economy; Evidences of Christianity (Hopkins’s); Chemistry. Second Term—Woolsey’s International Law; Moral Science; Constitution of the United States (Andrews’); Mineralogy; Botany; Geology (Dana’s); During the year: Compositions, Debates, Original Declamations.
(Submitted on May 11, 2017.)
Credits. This page was last revised on June 6, 2023. It was originally submitted on May 11, 2017, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio. This page has been viewed 880 times since then and 104 times this year. Last updated on June 2, 2023, by Grant & Mary Ann Fish of Galloway, Ohio. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on May 11, 2017, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio. 7. submitted on May 17, 2017, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio. • J. Makali Bruton was the editor who published this page.
Editor’s want-list for this marker. Photos of campus • Photos of other buildings on campus. • Can you help?