Albany College (Albany, Or.)

The first literary society at Albany College was a men's organization called Sigma Phi organized in the fall of 1867. Sigma Phi had the responsibility of managing the College's library, which was donated to the College by the city of Albany's Library and Literary Institute. In 1880 Sigma Phi re-organized under the new name, Albany College Literary Society. For a short time in the early 1880s, the Albany College Literary Society merged with Albany's women's literary society, the Erodelphians. The merger was short-lived and the societies split are resumed individual self-governance. The last documented activity of Sigma Phi occurred on March 13, 1899.

From the guide to the Albany College Literary Society Collection, 1880-1899, (Lewis & Clark College Special Collections and Archives)

In 1867 a group of Presbyterian settlers in Albany, Oregon established the Albany Collegiate Institute. The institute included a college preparatory department, as well as the college itself. In 1925, Albany College sold its centrally located campus to the Albany school district, and relocated to a larger parcel of land southwest of downtown. Financial hardships of economic depression hit the college in the 1930's, and it responded by opening a satellite campus in Portland, hoping to draw students from the larger population base. This plan was so successful that the college decided to relocate permanently to Portland. In 1941 the college acquired the Fir Acres estate in southwest Portland. The estate was originally owned by Lloyd Frank, who had commissioned Herman Brookman to design its buildings and gardens. In 1942 classes began on the new campus, and the college unveiled its new name, Lewis & Clark College. The college has resided on this new campus continuously since 1942.

From the guide to the Albany College Bookplate Collection, 1844-1930, (Lewis & Clark College Special Collections and Archives)