The Bicentennial Bantam: 200 Years of Trinity College

  1823 - The inspiration for the Greek Revival buildings on the original Washington College campus was the University of Virginia. 1824 -    Classes for Washington College students began at 5am in the summer and 6am in the winter. 1824  - When Washington College started, it was possible to earn an "English diploma" by taking courses for at least 2 years without seeking a traditional degree. 1824 - On the eve of commencement, President Brownell would traditionally open up his home to host the annual president's "levee," a popular gala open to seniors, alumni and friends of the College.  1824 - The oldest continuously active student group is the Chapel Singers founded in the College's very first academic year in 1824.   1826  - The Washington College library in 1826 was second only to Harvard in size, yet considered more valuable. At the time, Harvard was already 190 years old. 1830 - The Very Reverend Edward Jones of Charleston, SC is awarded a degree, ma

Our business is to win the war. Begin now. Those were the parting words of the man who stood on this very spot 102 years ago. It was 1918 on the eve of the 92 nd commencement exercises. In front of Northam Towers was the largest crowd ever assembled in the history of the College. 5,000 people hung on every word from the 26 th president of the United States. One of his last speeches, it lasted over an hour. And just six months later, he would be gone.  There had been Roosevelts at Trinity, but Colonel Roosevelt (he preferred “Colonel Roosevelt” to “President Roosevelt”) was there at the behest of his friend, President Flavel Luther. Later that year, those brass letters in front of Northam that are so familiar to us all were embedded in the Long Walk to memorialize that very special moment in history and the Biblical passage read in his address.  Consider what that morning looked like. It was 11 o’clock on a beautiful, cloudless Sunday. A large dark blue banner with