University Of Nashville
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University of Nashville was a
private university Private universities and private colleges are institutions of higher education, not operated, owned, or institutionally funded by governments. They may (and often do) receive from governments tax breaks, public student loans, and grant (money ...
in
Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...
. It was established in 1806 as Cumberland College. It existed as a distinct entity until 1909; operating at various times a medical school, a four-year military college, a literary arts (liberal arts) college, and a boys preparatory school. Educational institutions in operation today that can trace their roots to the University of Nashville include
Montgomery Bell Academy Montgomery Bell Academy (MBA) is a preparatory day school for boys in grades 7 through 12 in Nashville, Tennessee. History MBA was established in 1867 in the aftermath of the American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861&nb ...
, an all-male preparatory school; the
Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...
Medical School; Peabody College at Vanderbilt University; and the
University School of Nashville University School of Nashville is an independent, coeducational, day school located in Nashville, Tennessee. History Referred to colloquially as USN, the school was founded in 1888 by the Peabody Board of Trustees. The school was first founded a ...
, a co-educational preparatory school.


History

The predecessor to the University of Nashville, Davidson Academy, was founded as a preparatory school for boys in Nashville, Tennessee, in 1785. In 1802 this institution moved to a building in downtown Nashville. The facility, named Cumberland Hall, was located at 300 Peabody St., on the corner of what is now Peabody St. and Third Avenue. The building no longer stands, but a Tennessee State Historical Marker was erected on the site. In 1806, Davidson Academy changed its name to Cumberland College. United States President
Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was an American lawyer, planter, general, and statesman who served as the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before being elected to the presidency, he gained fame as ...
served on the board of trustees for many years during this time. Meanwhile, Reverend
Philip Lindsley Philip Lindsley (1786–1855) was an American Presbyterian minister, educator and classicist. He served as the acting president of the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University) from 1822 to 1824, and as the first president of the now-defun ...
(1786–1855) was named the chancellor of Cumberland College in 1824. In 1826, the Tennessee Legislature changed the name of Cumberland College to the University of Nashville. In 1827, future Confederate General
Gideon Pillow Gideon Johnson Pillow (June 8, 1806 – October 8, 1878) was an American lawyer, politician, speculator, slaveowner, United States Army major general of volunteers during the Mexican–American War and Confederate brigadier general in the Ameri ...
was part of a graduating class of twelve. Under Reverend Phillip Lindsley, the University of Nashville provided educational instruction to young men, and Nashville became known as the
Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
of the South''.' In 1850, all parts of the college level instruction were shut down, a consequence of a
cholera epidemic Seven cholera pandemics have occurred in the past 200 years, with the first pandemic originating in India in 1817. The seventh cholera pandemic is officially a current pandemic and has been ongoing since 1961, according to a World Health Organiz ...
in the city. Meanwhile, Cumberland Hall was torn down, and the University of Nashville opened a medical college in 1851. In 1853, a new building was constructed at 724 Second Avenue in Nashville, and in 1854, the college re-opened. In 1855, Lindsley's son and successor
John Berrien Lindsley John Berrien Lindsley (1822–1897) was an American Presbyterian minister and educator in Nashville, Tennessee. Born in Princeton, New Jersey and educated at the University of Pennsylvania Medical School, he married an heiress to the Carnton ...
merged the
Western Military Institute The Western Military Institute was a preparatory school and college located first in Kentucky, then in Tennessee. It was founded in 1847 in Georgetown, Kentucky, and it later moved to Nashville, Tennessee, where it merged with Montgomery Bell Academ ...
and the University of Nashville. It moved its entire operation from
Georgetown, Kentucky Georgetown is a home rule-class city in Scott County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 37,086 at the 2020 census. It is the 6th-largest city by population in the U.S. state of Kentucky. It is the seat of its county. It was original ...
, where it had operated since its founding in 1847, to Nashville.
Bushrod Johnson Bushrod Rust Johnson (October 7, 1817 – September 12, 1880) was a Confederate general in the American Civil War and an officer in the United States Army. As a university professor he had been active in the state militias of Kentucky and Tenness ...
was a professor at the Western Military Institute from 1851 to 1855. He served as its headmaster when it moved to Nashville in the merger, and continued in that capacity until the outbreak of the
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...
in 1861. He served the
Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting ...
during the war as a general. It was during this period that
Sam Davis Sam Davis (October 6, 1842 – November 27, 1863) was a Confederate soldier executed by Union forces in Pulaski, Tennessee, during the American Civil War. He is popularly known as the ''Boy Hero of the Confederacy'', although he was 21 when he ...
attended the Western Military Institute; he was later called the "boy hero of the Confederacy", and hanged by Union forces as a spy in 1863. The Western Military Institute did not offer instruction from 1862 to 1865. During 1862, the campus building served as a Union hospital for Federal officers. Industrialist Montgomery Bell left the University of Nashville $20,000 in his will in 1867, and Lindsley used the proceeds to open up the
Montgomery Bell Academy Montgomery Bell Academy (MBA) is a preparatory day school for boys in grades 7 through 12 in Nashville, Tennessee. History MBA was established in 1867 in the aftermath of the American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861&nb ...
(MBA) that year as a new preparatory school in Nashville. The new school took over the operations of the then defunct Western Military Institute and the University of Nashville preparatory school. In 1866,
E. Kirby Smith Four-star rank, General Edmund Kirby Smith (May 16, 1824March 28, 1893) was a senior Officer (armed forces), officer of the Confederate States Army who commanded the Trans-Mississippi Department (comprising Arkansas, Missouri, Texas, western Lo ...
was named co-chancellor of the University of Nashville, along with Bushrod Johnson, who returned to the school as a professor, to replace Lindsley. General Smith served as its chancellor from 1870 to 1875. That year, a financial crisis was resolved when the Peabody Fund made a large donation, and the University of Nashville's operations were split into three different entities. The board of trustees that had operated the University of Nashville since its re-incorporation in 1826 remained intact and were given the operations of the
Montgomery Bell Academy Montgomery Bell Academy (MBA) is a preparatory day school for boys in grades 7 through 12 in Nashville, Tennessee. History MBA was established in 1867 in the aftermath of the American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861&nb ...
preparatory school. The medical school became part of
Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...
in 1874. The collegiate program received the financial donation from the Peabody Fund, established a new board of trustees, and it was renamed the Peabody Normal School. In an effort to create a major Southern teachers' college, the grounds and buildings of the Peabody Normal School were donated to the George Peabody College for Teachers in 1909. The donation was estimated to be worth about $250,000. In 1914 the George Peabody College for Teachers purchased a new site adjacent to
Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...
, with over 50 acres (20 hectares) of wooded lawn. It constructed new buildings. However, after falling upon hard times in the 1970s, Peabody College amalgamated with the wealthier university in 1979. However, the board of trustees of the formerly affiliated preparatory school, Montgomery Bell Academy, continues to operate under the name of "The Board of Trustees of the University of Nashville."


Notable alumni


References


Further reading

* Parks, Joseph Howard, ''Edmund Kirby Smith, CSA'', LSU Press, 1954. * Stonesifer, Roy P. and Hughes, Nathaniel Cheairs, ''The Life and Wars of Gideon J. Pillow'', University of North Carolina Press, 1993, . * Rudolph, F., ''The American College and University'', The University of Georgia Press, 1991, '


External links

* * {{authority control 1826 establishments in Tennessee 1909 disestablishments in Tennessee Defunct private universities and colleges in Tennessee Educational institutions established in 1826 Educational institutions disestablished in 1909 Universities and colleges in Nashville, Tennessee