Lane University was a college located in
Lecompton, Kansas
Lecompton (pronounced ) is a city in Douglas County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 588. Lecompton was the ''de jure'' territorial capital of Kansas from 1855 to 1861, and the Douglas County seat f ...
, United States.
[Volume II of Kansas: a cyclopedia of state history, embracing events, institutions, industries, counties, cities, towns, prominent persons, etc. ...](_blank)
Standard Pub. Co. Chicago : 1912. 3 v. in 4. : front., ill., ports.; 28 cm. Vols. I-II edited by Frank W. Blackmar. Transcribed July 2002 by Carolyn Ward. It was founded in 1865 by Rev.
Solomon Weaver
Solomon (; , ),, ; ar, سُلَيْمَان, ', , ; el, Σολομών, ; la, Salomon also called Jedidiah ( Hebrew: , Modern: , Tiberian: ''Yăḏīḏăyāh'', "beloved of Yah"), was a monarch of ancient Israel and the son and succe ...
, the first president, and was named after
U.S. Senator
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and powe ...
James H. Lane. Jim Lane was a main free-state leader, and Lecompton was previously the capital of the opposing pro-slavery faction. Local tradition notes that a funding drive to construct the university promised to name it after the major contributor. Allegedly, James H. Lane made the largest pledge, received the namesake honor, and then died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound before he could carry out his promise.
In 1865
The university was first located in what had been the Rowena Hotel. In 1865 the state donated to the university 13 acres of land that included the foundation of what had been intended to be the
Kansas Territorial Capitol
Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...
building at Lecompton. A college building was erected on the south half of the old foundation in 1882.
The
Church of the United Brethren in Christ
The Church of the United Brethren in Christ is an evangelical Christian denomination with churches in 17 countries. It is Protestant, with an episcopal structure and Arminian theology, with roots in the Mennonite and German Reformed communiti ...
owned and controlled the school during its entire history. Almost all of the presidents were pastors. In 1900 it had 11 faculty members and 178 enrolled students.
In 1902 Lane University was united with Campbell University to form
Campbell College (Kansas)
Campbell College was a college in Holton, Kansas, United States. It opened in 1880 and closed in 1933.
History
It was initially planned in 1870 and opened in 1880 with a large part of the funding provided by Allen G. Campbell, a wealthy Utah min ...
.
David Eisenhower and Ida Stover, the parents of former president
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...
, met at Lane University as students and married in the chapel in 1885.
Today Lane University is a museum known as the Territorial Capital Museum, dedicated to Kansas history before the Civil War. It is listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
.
Lane University is not to be confused with
Lane College
Lane College is a private historically black college associated with the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church and located in Jackson, Tennessee. It offers associate and baccalaureate degrees in the arts and sciences.
History
Lane College was ...
in
Jackson, Tennessee
Jackson is a city in and the county seat of Madison County, Tennessee, United States. Located east of Memphis, Tennessee, Memphis, it is a regional center of trade for West Tennessee. Its total population was 68,205 as of the 2020 United States ...
.
References
External links
Lane University & Territorial Capital Museum
Defunct private universities and colleges in Kansas
University and college buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Kansas
History museums in Kansas
Museums in Douglas County, Kansas
Educational institutions established in 1865
Buildings and structures in Douglas County, Kansas
Lecompton, Kansas
National Register of Historic Places in Douglas County, Kansas
1865 establishments in Kansas
Capitols of Kansas
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