James Canfield portrait

Program, Charter Day

Brandon Neary, History 250: The Historian Craft, Fall 2022

The first 25 years of the University of Nebraska’s history was hampered by low admissions, poor infrastructure, and the constant threat of bankruptcy, through all this, the University underwent drastic improvements throughout the institutions first quarter centennial. Growing alongside the state of Nebraska, the relationship between Nebraska and the University is intertwined, fully uniting at the 25th Charter Day. The University of Nebraska adapted its academic philosophy to best serve the purposes of the state and the institutions students. Among the major players that were influential towards shifting the University’s culture in the 1800s, Chancellor James Canfield is among the most prominent. The University of Nebraska was on an upward climb when Canfield became Chancellor in 1891 and he used this positive momentum to transform the University into a prominent institution. All this momentum culminated at the University of Nebraska’s 25th Anniversary, an opportunity to impress the world. Although the University of Nebraska had faced years of turmoil, the 25th anniversary represented a defining moment where the University overcame the adversity of infancy and solidified its place into the new millennium as a premier land grant university.

The University of Nebraska’s story began in 1862 when the U.S. Congress passed the Morrill Act, an act that provided land for public universities. Unknown to the lawmakers at the time, the Morrill Act became known as the greatest contribution to higher education. The Morrill Act was created “to promote the liberal and practical education of the industrial classes in the several pursuits and professions of life.”[1] After much debate on the location, Lincoln was ultimately chosen as the birthplace of the University. Building began in 1869 and four blocks were set aside for University Hall, the first campus building. A partisan of the University stated half a decade later, “The commissioners who located and laid out the capital city and set aside four blocks for the University campus, must have selected the location of these four blocks when blindfolded.”[2] Many Nebraskans were against construction because the state was unestablished at the time and resided on the frontier of the United States. Nebraska had been officially declared a state only two years prior to construction on University Hall. The Regents, however, were impatient and desperately wanted to get the university operating to receive the allocated Morrill lands. Built in 1869, University Hall was $28,000 over the budget, with little oversight given during the construction process.[3] Little did Nebraskans know, this investment shared extremely little return for decades.

Problems began instantly for the newly created University. A little more than a year after being built, the so called “Parthenon of the Prairie” underwent repairs. University Hall sported a leaky roof, an unstable brick foundation, and a furnace unable to properly heat the rooms of the building. Meant to withstand the test of time, the building barely survived fifty years and was under constant construction until it was ultimately torn down.[4] University Hall was a good allegory for the University in the 1800s. The University, like University Hall, had an unstable foundation and was undergoing constant construction. Under constant criticism throughout its early years from Nebraska newspapers, Nebraskans rejected the failing University. Only a small number of students were enrolled during the institutions first year of service. Students were given three course paths to choose from: Classical, Scientific, and Selected which was a combination of Classical and Scientific studies for exceptional students.[5] Despite the Morill Act calling for the establishment of agricultural colleges, the school’s first iteration focused on classical studies. The Morill Acts need of an agricultural college would not be satisfied for many years.

In the 1880s, the University was still in its experimental phase, attempting to figure out its identity. Nebraska had become filled with religiously affiliated colleges, furthering the need for a true public state university, which the University was not at the time. A battle on the school’s academic philosophy between fundamentalist and modernist took place. The dogmatic principles of the fundamentalists were adamant that the classical curriculum of math and languages was the only way to morally educate the youth. A group of young men known as the “Trio of Sampsons,” a controversial group of professors, were determined to fight for educational reform and shift the academic philosophy of the University. The “Trio of Sampsons” believed students should be given the freedom to elect their own courses and professors should be “intellectual guides” rather than “moral preceptors.”[6] The result of this battle led to the University’s movement away from nonsecularism and its establishment as a public state university.

The success of the “Trio of Sampsons” was the moment the University began its transition into a prosperous institution. Since the University’s inception, administrators hoped to use the school as a launching point to the West. In the late 1880s, this dream was finally coming to fruition. Students who made their way to Lincoln arrived on campus with the idea of the West representing a chance for growth and opportunity. The growth and success of the University was becoming noticeable to the students and general population of Lincoln. An 1888 issue of the University’s newspaper, Hesperian, stated, “the general opinion seems to be that the term has been the most prosperous in years.”[7] The buildup of momentum that the University created in the 1880s, developed further in the 1890s, better referred to as the “Golden Age” of the University.

In 1891, the University hired James Canfield as Chancellor. “If ever a man was loved on the University of Nebraska-Lincoln campus, it was James Canfield.”[8] Canfield was a universally loved and respected man due to the openness and genuine care he showed for the University and its students. He went to work instantly, creating room for sidewalks on campus and removing unflattering objects such as a gas pipe fence before students arrived for the fall semester.[9] Lincoln was transitioning from a backwater on the frontier into a legitimate city and James Canfield planned to make sure the University made this transition alongside Lincoln. Realizing the importance of building and maintaining a relationship with the state of Nebraska. He urged professors at the University to accept speaking engagements and opened the University to visitors, allowing guests to tour the campus. Arriving at a major turning point in the early years of establishment, James Canfield allowed the University of Nebraska to grow and expand farther than was believed possible.

The growing number of students at the University led to a problem that had not been dealt with prior. An overcrowded University with not enough classrooms or supplies to properly deal with the influx of students, brought financial stress to the administration. In 1891, when Canfield became Chancellor, the student body consisted of four hundred students. By the time the 1894 schoolyear began, the student body rose to thirteen hundred students.[10] The University was still condensed in the original four block radius it had been relegated to when first constructed. To manage the high admission, the school began to offer divisions to certain classes with high enrollment, to give a more worthy educational experience for the students. It was deemed however, that if admission continued to rise as it were, the school would be unable to support the student body by the next year.[11] Despite the overcrowded lifestyle, the University was still developing in a prosperous way. New schools at the University opened such as a Fine Arts School and a Law School. The most important development was the rise of the Agricultural College. Once a forgotten school, the Agricultural College was beginning to prosper, and the University was finally able to fulfill its original agreement with the Morill Act.

For twenty-four years, the University of Nebraska constantly advanced and evolved its educational philosophy, undergoing years of instability and low funding. The establishment of new colleges, rise of admission and the improvement of overall campus life rewarded the resilience and patience of early university administrators. James Canfield was aware that the growth of the institution intertwined with the growth of Nebraska as a state, and when the schools twenty fifth Charter Day rolled around, the celebration would not only be a celebration of the University, but also the state of Nebraska.

Charter Day is defined as the beginning of a university because the life of an institution legally begins with the signing of the school’s charter.[13] For the University of Nebraska that day is February 15th. Charter Day celebrations are primarily a one-day celebration or a small acknowledgement of the University’s founding. The 1894 celebration was to be much more lavish than other celebrations prior. The celebration extended over a two-day period, displaying the growth and success of the University during the first twenty-five years of existence. Invitations were sent out to alumni, former university administrators, and other notable academic names. One notable guest that made the journey to the Charter Day celebration was Yale Professor and future U.S. President Woodrow Wilson.[14] Chancellors employed by other respective land-grant universities in the U.S. received personal invitations from James Canfield. Many were unable to make the event, but the University received heaps of praise from the academic community. The Department of Agriculture stated, “no other state school has in so short of a time become so worthy of the name University.”[15] What had become common knowledge in Nebraska was becoming known throughout the nation. The University of Nebraska was quickly becoming one of the finest universities in the nation.

For those who did make the journey, they were welcomed with open arms by the University and the city of Lincoln. To help accommodate the travelers, the citizens of Lincoln opened their homes to around a thousand guests due to Lincoln hotels becoming completely booked.[16] Not only were the doors of Lincoln homes open to the travelers, but the doors of the University were open as well. Visitors were given the freedom to roam around the University and inspect all the rooms; they were most impressed by the elephant fossil collection of Erwin Barbour, which can still be seen at Morill Hall the University State Museum today.[17] The first impressions that the visitors received upon arriving to Lincoln would prepare them for the events to follow.

The 25th Charter Day celebration officially began at ten a.m. Thursday, February 15th ,1894. The crowd was welcomed with speeches from Nebraska’s Governor Lorenzo Crounse, Lincoln Mayor Austin H. Weir, and Chancellor James Canfield. After the welcome address, guests were able to peruse the buildings on campus and immerse themselves in the culture of the campus. There was a tour route that directed guests through the University’s campus. Beginning at University Hall, the original campus building, the route moved through the remaining four buildings that had been constructed on campus and ended at the University Library.[18] The tour route displayed the impressive growth of infrastructure at the University. University Hall had been the only campus building until 1886, meaning the other four buildings were constructed within a span of only ten years. To end the day, Professor George Elliot Howard gave an oration that was followed with musical renditions of Bach and Wagner.[19] These musical renditions displayed the talent of the University’s School of Music that was established only two years prior and left guests excited for the next day.

Friday was devoted to exhibiting the students at the University. On how the students should celebrate the festivities, a student writer for The Nebraskan stated, “We are at home, in the house of our educational mother; and we are going to help her celebrate her birthday.”[20] Friday morning began with the University Glee Club singing the school song ‘Scarlet and Cream’. This was followed by more orations and music, but, the main event of the Friday morning activities, were readings from scenes of Elektra and Antigone by Sophocles.[21] The rendition of these Ancient Greek plays was a full circle moment for the University, because of the school’s original focus on Classics when first established. It was a fitting way to pay respect to the institution’s humble beginnings. Unfortunately, the celebration had to come to an end. The culmination of the 1894 Charter Day was celebrated in the Armory building with a banquet attended by alumni and invited guests. They were entertained with dancing and music that played late into the night. As the band played the final song and the clock shifted to the next day, the University of Nebraska played its final song as a fledgling university and shifted into the future as a powerful land-grant institution.

The 25th Charter Day for the University of Nebraska was a major success. Stores in Lincoln ran out of goods, and they were forced to request merchandise from neighboring towns.[22] On the anniversary event The Nebraskan stated, “It has shown us that we can do a great many things which we before thought impossible. We feel that we are out of our childhood, that the experimental stage has been passed. In fact, we have gained a goodly share of true college spirit.”[23] The celebration represented not only everything that had become of the University but also Lincoln, and the state of Nebraska. The University, Lincoln, and Nebraska had all grown together and persevered through the difficult early years of establishment. When James Canfield arrived in Lincoln at the beginning of the decade, admission was at a small five-hundred students. By the end of the decade, admission was at two thousand with ninety percent of the students hailing from Nebraska.[24] The University underwent constant criticism from Nebraskans in their early years, but at the turn of the century, the University of Nebraska was finally embraced by its fellow citizens.

In 1895, James Canfield announced he was leaving the University. His departure was greeted with despair from the campus and the city of Lincoln. During his time in Nebraska, the University transitioned from a campus on the frontier, to one of the “Big Four” state universities alongside Michigan, Wisconsin, and California. In his departure speech Canfield stated, “there is no more active, no more effective, faculty in the entire list of state universities.”[25] The accomplishments achieved by the University in its first twenty-five years, was crucial to the overall development. Celebrated at the 25th anniversary event, the event defined the University’s arrival into the upper echelon of land-grant schools. The 25th anniversary not only represented the journey the University underwent in the first quarter centennial of existence, the 25th anniversary represented the University’s march into the future as a prosperous state school that grew alongside the state of Nebraska.

Endnotes

1. Knoll, R 1995, Prairie University A History of the University of Nebraska, University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln
2. Edna D. Bullock “Buildings and Grounds,” in Semi-Centennial Anniversary Book: The University of Nebraska, 1869-1919,comp. Louise Pound (Lincoln: University of Nebraska, 1919 pp. 37
3. Knoll, p. 5
4. Knoll, p.5
5. Knoll, p. 8
6. Knoll, p. 16
7. Ansley C.F. 1888, ‘Editorial Notes’, The Hesperian, December 15, p. 1
8. (Nebraska U a Collaborative History), 1890-1899: A Golden Era, Chancellors, unlhistory.unl.edu, Lincoln, viewed 14 April 2022 https://unlhistory.unl.edu/exhibits/show/1890-1899--a-golden-era/chancellor-canfield
9. Knoll, p. 28
10. James Canfield-University Graduates, Box 1, Folder 1, RG 05-07-01, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Archives and Special Collections
11. James Canfield-University Graduates, Box 1, Folder 1, RG 05-07-01, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Archives and Special Collections
12. Charter Day Typescript, Box 1, Folder 1, RG 00/14/00, University of Nebraska Archives and Special Collections
13. 1894, ‘How Shall We Celebrate?’ The Nebraskan, January 24, p 4, https://nebnewspapers.unl.edu/lccn/sn96080313/1894-01-24/ed-1/seq-4/
14. Department of Agriculture-James Canfield, Box 1, Folder 2 378 E25. C4, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Archives and Special Collections
15. University of Nebraska, Executive Office, Box 1, Folder 11, RG 00-14-00, University of Nebraska-LincolnArchives and Special Collections
16. Joel Geyer, 2005, Frontier Dreams University,film,Vimeo
17. Charter Day Typescript, Box 1, Folder 11, RG 00/14/00, University of Nebraska Archives and Special Collections
18. Charter Day Typescript, Box 1, Folder 11, RG 00/14/00, University of Nebraska Archives and Special Collections
19. 1894, ‘How Shall We Celebrate?’ The Nebraskan, January 24, p 1, https://nebnewspapers.unl.edu/lccn/sn96080313/1894-01-24/ed-1/seq-4/
20. Charter Day Typescript, Box 1, Folder 11, RG 00/14/00, University of Nebraska Archives and Special Collections
21. Nebraska U a Collaborative History), 1890-1899: A Golden Era, Communities, unlhistory.unl.edu, Lincoln, viewed 14 April 2022, https://unlhistory.unl.edu/exhibits/show/1890-1899--a-golden-era/community
22. 1894, ‘Editorial’, The Nebraskan,February24, p 2, https://nebnewspapers.unl.edu/lccn/sn96080313/1894-02-24/ed-1/seq-2/
23. Knoll, p 2825James Canfield-University Graduates, Box 1, Folder 1, RG 05-07-01, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Archives and Special Collections

Bibliography

• Knoll, R 1995, Prairie University A History of the University of Nebraska, University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln
• Edna D. Bullock “Buildings and Grounds,” in Semi-Centennial Anniversary Book: The University of Nebraska, 1869-1919, comp. Louise Pound (Lincoln: University of Nebraska, 1919 pp. 37
• Ansley C.F. 1888, ‘Editorial Notes’, The Hesperian, December 15, p. 1
• (Nebraska U a Collaborative History), 1890-1899: A Golden Era, Chancellors, unlhistory.unl.edu, Lincoln, viewed 14 April 2022 https://unlhistory.unl.edu/exhibits/show/1890-1899--a-golden-era/chancellor-canfield
• James Canfield-University Graduates, Box 1, Folder 1, RG 05-07-01, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Archives and Special Collections 6. Nebraska U a Collaborative History), 1890-1899: A Golden Era, Communities, unlhistory.unl.edu, Lincoln, viewed 14 April 2022, https://unlhistory.unl.edu/exhibits/show/1890-1899--a-golden-era/community 7. Charter Day Typescript, Box 1, Folder 1, RG 00/14/00, University of Nebraska Archives and Special Collections 8. Department of Agriculture-James Canfield, Box 1, Folder 2 378 E25. C4, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Archives and Special Collections 9. University of Nebraska, Executive Office, Box 1, Folder 11, RG 00-14-00, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Archives and Special Collections 10. 1894, ‘How Shall We Celebrate?’ The Nebraskan, January 24, p 4, https://nebnewspapers.unl.edu/lccn/sn96080313/1894-01-24/ed-1/seq-4/ 11. Joel Geyer, 2005, Frontier Dreams University, film, Vimeo 12. 1894, ‘Editorial’, The Nebraskan, February 24, p 2, https://nebnewspapers.unl.edu/lccn/sn96080313/1894-02-24/ed-1/seq-2/ 1 Knoll, R 1995, Prairie University A History of the University of Nebraska, University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln 2 Edna D. Bullock “Buildings and Grounds,” in Semi-Centennial Anniversary Book: The University of Nebraska, 1869-1919, comp. Louise Pound (Lincoln: University of Nebraska, 1919 pp. 37 3 Knoll, p. 5 4 Knoll, p. 5 5 Knoll, p. 8 6 Knoll,