History of the University

The University of Richmond began in 1830 as the Virginia Baptist Education Society to help young men prepare for the ministry. By 1840, the Society secured a charter from the General Assembly of Virginia that transformed the seminary into Richmond College. By the mid-1840s a four-year liberal arts curriculum was adopted and Richmond College awarded its first baccalaureate degree in 1849.

The outbreak of the Civil War forced the college to suspend classes. The trustees invested most of the endowment in Confederate securities, and the campus was used by Louisiana troops as a hospital. At the end of the war the buildings were plundered and the library was dispersed.
In 1866, classes were resumed under the Presidency of Rev. T. G. Jones who served until 1869. For the next 25 years, an administrative officer elected by the faculty ran the college. F. W. Boatwright was chosen as President in 1894. In 1898, women were admitted as day students and by 1910 a separate liberal arts school for women, Westhampton College, was begun on land west of the city. By 1914, with additional construction, the new campus was occupied and is the current site of the University.

Key dates:

• 1830 - Beginnings of Richmond College
• 1870 - Start of Law School
• 1914 - Westhampton College
• 1920 - Charter of University of Richmond
• 1921 - Graduate School
• 1924 - Evening School of Business
• 1949 - School of Business Administration
• 1962 - University College
• 1975 - Merger of Richmond College and Westhampton College
• 1988 - Jepson School of Leadership
• 1994 - University College renamed School of Continuing Studies (SCS)

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