User:Morrandr/Philomath College



= Philomath College = Located in Benton County, Oregon, United States, Philomath College was a preparatory institution founded in 1867 by the United Brethren Church. Now, it stands as the place of the Benton County Historical Society and Museum. The college remained operational until its closing in 1929, due to a decline in enrollments following the unfolding of the Great Depression.

History
After his trip East to the Willamette Valley in search of land to settle, Reverend Thomas Jefferson Connor of the United Brethren Church led families to Benton County in January, 1852. The first United Brethren Church was established by Reverend Thomas Jefferson Connor, at Union schoolhouse, which was the only school in the area. Townsfolk yearned for a more accessible school.

It wasn't until February of 1865 that a committee of United Brethren Church members formed, and the funds ($2,510) would be collected to purchase the half-section of land from the Henderson donation land claim. The 1867 completion marked the commencement of classes in the fall. As the surrounding town of Philomath expanded, so the college grew with additions until its electrical modernization in 1909.

Construction
The original stone foundation was first laid in 1865, both by masons and students of the college. Construction led on for two years, with the steady help of a brick kiln on site, which saw the completion of the structure in the fall of 1867. Additions had been made as more pupils received their education, a new gymnasium being built in 1902-03, and a west wing finished in 1905, with yet another on the way in 1906. By 1909, the school was electrically powered, pumping water, and overseeing sidewalks leading towards the emerging lumber town of Philomath.

Reopened and Repurposed
Following years of disrepair after the college had been closed down in 1929, with Depression tensions causing a decline in enrollments, the college was used as a church. Then, in the 1970's, local citizens acknowledged the buildings cultural and historical significance, and redeemed it through the National Register of Historical Places. What is now the site for the Benton County Historical Society, Philomath College became the Benton County Historical Museum in 1980.