Campus of Clemson University

The Campus of Clemson University was originally the site of U.S. Vice President John C. Calhoun's plantation, named Fort Hill. The plantation passed to his daughter, Anna, and son-in-law, Thomas Green Clemson. On Clemson's death in 1888, he willed the land to the state of South Carolina for the creation of a public university.

The university was founded in 1889, and three buildings from the initial construction still exist today: Hardin Hall (built in 1890), Main Building (later renamed Tillman Hall) (1894), and Godfrey Hall (1898). Other periods of large expansion occurred in 1936–1938, when 8 new buildings constructed, and the late 1950s through 1970, when no fewer than 25 buildings were constructed, most in a similar architectural style.

The campus contains two historic districts listed on the National Register of Historic Places: the Clemson University Historic District I on the northern edge of campus, and the Clemson University Historic District II in the center of campus.