Transylvania University

Historical note: The principal responsibility of the Dean of Students at Transylvania University has been the coordination of offices and programs directly related to non-academic activities of students and student organizations.

Historical note: Administration of student admissions and the recording of scholastic records has at various times been the responsibility of the Transylvania University Registrar, Recorder, and Dean or Director of Admissions.

Historical note: The business and financial affairs of Transylvania University and its predecessor, Kentucky University, were the primary responsibility of the University Treasurer. Subsequent reorganizations have resulted in this responsibility being passed the Vice President of Finance.

Historical note: The Transylvania University Library currently holds more than 100,000 volumes. In addition to collections designed to support the university's basic academic programs, the library houses a special collections containing late eighteenth century and nineteenth century books and manuscript holdings.

Historical note: Early efforts at securing operational funds and an increased endowment were administered primarily by the presidents of Transylvania University, with relevant records maintained by the University Treasurer. By the 1940s the position of Director of Public Relations had been established among whose functions was the enhancement of the university's public image and the effectiveness of the alumni association as a fund-raising tool. Later the Office of Development functioned as the principal fund-raising unit, and within it, the Division of Alumni Relations.

Chartered as a public school by the Virginia Assembly in 1780 as Transylvania Seminary, the institution, renamed Transylvania University in 1799, was the first college west of the Allegheny Mountains. Located in Lexington, Ky., Transylvania ranks among the elite small colleges as a distinguished liberal arts institution. As an educational pioneer, Transylvania played a significant role in developing the trans-Allegheny West and was the first college west of the Alleghenies to have a medical school (1817). Among its founding trustees were noted leaders such as Isaac Shelby, the first governor of Kentucky, George Rogers Clark, the Revolutionary War hero who won the Northwest from the British and Henry Clay. National Leaders such as George Washington and John Adams were included in the list of initial contributors.

Chartered as a public school by the Virginia Assembly in 1780 as Transylvania Seminary, the institution, renamed Transylvania University in 1799, was the first college west of the Allegheny Mountains. Located in Lexington, Ky., Transylvania ranks among the elite small colleges as a distinguished liberal arts institution. As an early educational pioneer, Transylvania played a significant role in developing the trans-Allegheny West and was the first college west of the Alleghenies to have a medical school (1817). Among its founding trustees were noted leaders such as Isaac Shelby, the first governor of Kentucky, George Rogers Clark, the Revolutionary War hero who won the Northwest from the British and Henry Clay. National leaders such as George Washington and John Adams were included in the list of initial contributors.

Historical note: During much of this period the principal academic administrator of Transylvania University was the College Dean. Later this function was assumed by the Vice President and Dean of the College.

Historical note: The Medical Department was established at Transylvania University shortly after the incorporation in 1799, with Lexington physicians Samuel Brown and Frederick Ridgely appointed as professors. Although the department was largely inactive until 1815, it experienced rapid growth following the appointment of President Horace Holley in 1818, attracting an excellent teaching staff which included Charles Caldwell, Benjamin W. Dudley, and Daniel Drake; and making sizable expenditures for its medical library and equipment. In its years of operation the department enrolled nearly 6,500 students of whom 1,881 received medical degrees. During the period from 1824 to 1835 the school's enrollment was the second largest among American medical schools.

The 1830s were marked by stagnation in the economic vitality of Lexington, in contrast with the rapid growth of Louisville and Cincinnati, both of which competed with Transylvania for prospective students. In 1837 half the medical faculty left to join the Louisville Medical Institute, led by Dean Charles Caldwell. The remainder of the department's history was one of gradual decline which culminated with its closing in 1859. The department was revived briefly in the late 1890s and closed for the last time in 1907.

The Law Department of Transylvania University was also established soon after the university's incorporation as the first law school in the West. Among the early faculty were Henry Clay, Jesse Bledsoe, and Willian T. Barry. Many graduates of the department entered politics being elected to various positions including more than 100 members of the United States Congress and twenty governors of various states. After a period of decline the department closed in 1858. In the years that followed it would be revived periodically, closing for the final time in 1912.

Historical note: In 1780 the Virginia legislature set aside land for the establishment of a school in the Kentucky district. In 1783 the school was named Transylvania Seminary. The first classes were held in Danville, Kentucky in 1785. By 1789 the school had moved to Lexington, Kentucky.

As a result of dissatisfaction surrounding waning Presbyterian influence at the seminary, Reverend David Rice and others broke with Transylvania and established Kentucky Academy in 1794. The academy was located in Pisgah, Woodford County where it remained until 1799 when it merged with Transylvania Seminary to form Transylvania University.

Schools of medicine and law were immediately established at the new university. Transylvania experienced rapid growth and earned a national reputation during the presidency of Horace Holley (1818-1925). Holley, a Unitarian minister and prominent educator, was able to attract outstanding faculty to the university. He left the university following attacks from conservative Presbyterian interests, and the withdrawal of state support by the General Assembly resulting from charges that the university had become elitist.

Following Holley's tenure the medical and law departments continued to flourish through the late 1850s when each was closed. However, by the 1830s the academic department was barely surviving. For much of the 1840s the Methodist Church controlled the university and it experienced a significant revival. This association ended in 1850 and the remainder of that decade was marked by a serious decline in all departments.

Bacon College was founded in Georgetown, Kentucky in 1837 by members of the Disciples of Christ Church. It moved to Harrodsburg in 1839 where it operated until 1850. It was reestablished in 1858, as Kentucky University and merged with Transylvania in 1865, retaining the name Kentucky University.