Today In History: King's College Opens in New York

In Lumine Tuo Videbimus Lumen / In your light we see the light.

--Columbia University Motto, St. Paul's Chapel. Psalm 36:9.

On July 17th, 1754, King's College opened in New York with but ten students whose first classes comprised Greek and Latin. Situated in a schoolhouse on the grounds of Trinity Church at Broadway and Wall streets, King's College was an Anglican academy established under royal charter by King George II of Great Britain. Its early students included Founding Fathers Alexander Hamilton and John Jay; its presidents, Samuel Johnson and Dwight Eisenhower, and its members have included foreign ministers, governors and statesmen, United States Supreme Court justices, Nobel laureates, Olympians, Pulitzer Prize winners, and many more.

It was renamed Columbia College in 1784, in deference to Italian explorer Christopher Columbus (then called Columbia University, 1896).  In 1760, King's College moved to its own building at Park Place overlooking the Hudson River,  where it remained until 1857. Some forty years later the College moved from its 49th Street address to the more expansive Morningside Heights neighborhood of Manhattan's Upper West Side where it has continued to expand. The fifth  oldest institution of higher education in the United States, and the oldest in the state of New York, Columbia University today enrolls over 36,000 students among twenty schools, with a long history of affiliated institutions that include Teachers College and Barnard College.

The following articles are drawn from Proquest Historical Newspapers, which informs and inspires classroom teaching and learning.

• A Historic "Black Book": Curious Volume in the Library of Columbia University.  Record of Misdeeds of King's College Students for Five Years Prior to the Revolution. (1900, Dec 16). New York Times (1857-1922) 
• Big Day at Columbia: Sesquicentennial of Founding of King's College. Lists of Honorary Doctorates Conferred Upon Distinguished Graduates of the University.  (1904, Nov 01). The Washington Post (1877-1922) 
• Dr. Butler Traces  Revolutionary Causes: tells London Audience the Colonists Were Nationally Conscious Long Before Break. Denies French Influence. (1923, May 25).  New York Times (1923-) 
• Callender, H. (1925, Feb 01). Alexander Hamilton in a New Role -- Educator: His Plan "When a King's College Trustee" Foresaw the Columbia University of Today.  New York Times (1923-) 
• 44 Canvases Depict Columbia Notables: Portraits of Figures in History of University Presented for 175th Anniversary Fete. To Be Exhibited Oct. 25 Pictures to Be in Display a Week -- Model of King's College Also Will Be Shown.  (1929, Oct 14). New York Times (1923-) 
• (1929, Oct 25). Columbia University Celebrates Anniversary of Founding in 1754: Typical Perspectives on Campus of Columbia University. The Christian Science Monitor (1908-) 
• University Gets Columbiana Tract: Recently Found Pamphlet of 1754 Reltes to Founding of King's College. Plea for Incorporation Attached Is Protest of Trustee Against Anglican Control of Institution. (1934, Nov 11). New York Times (1923-) 
• Columbia Figures as "King's College": George VI and Elizabeth to See Portrait of George II on Their Visit to University Tomorrow. Butler to Receive Them. Coykendall, Trustee Chairman, Also Will Greer Sovereigns in Library Rotunda.  (1939, Jun 09). New York Times (1923-) 
• Bicentennial Ceremony: Observance Today Will Mark Founding of King's College. (1954, Jul 16). New York Times (1923-) 
• Columbia Given Portrait of Jay: Pastel of Pine Presented for King's College Room. (1962, May 13). New York Times (1923-) 

Tips:

• A History of Columbia University, 1754-1904 : Published in Commemoration of the One Hundred and Fiftieth Anniversary of the Founding of King’s College. Columbia University Press, 1904. Closed Stacks Research ; LD1248 .H5 1904.
• A History of Columbia University, 1754-1904; Published in Commemoration of the One Hundred and Fiftieth Anniversary of the Founding of King’s College. The Columbia university press, The Macmillan company, agents; Macmillan & co., ltd., 1904. e-book.
• Humphrey, David C. From King’s College to Columbia, 1746-1800. Columbia University Press, 1976. Stacks ; LD1249 .H85.
• Johnson, Samuel. Samuel Johnson, President of King’s College, His Career and Writings. [AMS Press], 1972.  Closed Stacks Research ; LD1245 1754 .A53.
• McCaughey, Robert A. Stand, Columbia : A History of Columbia University in the City of New York, 1754-2004. Columbia University Press, 2003. e-book.
• Timelines and Histories of Columbia University. Columbia University Archives.

Images:

• The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Print Collection, The New York Public Library. "King's College. Erected in 1756." The New York Public Library Digital Collections. 1765 - 1896. 
• Poster Image: Columbia University, Low Library, Manhattan, Wikimedia Commons.
• The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Picture Collection, The New York Public Library. "A Glimpse of New York from Trinity Church Steeple." The New York Public Library Digital Collections. 1872-06-15.