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Ohio inventions and firsts · First · 1856

Wilberforce University

Wilberforce was founded in 1856 by the Methodist Episcopal Church; in 1863 the AME Church bought it for $10,000, and the university describes itself as the nation's oldest private historically Black university owned and operated by African Americans.

At a glance

Year
1856
Place
Wilberforce, Greene County ZIP 45384 · Greene County

The story

In the 1850s very few colleges would take Black students, and almost none were run by Black people. Wilberforce University was founded in 1856 by the Methodist Episcopal Church near Xenia, Ohio, and named for the British abolitionist William Wilberforce.

It was the third historically Black college founded in the United States, and the first to graduate students with an accredited bachelor's degree, in 1857. During the Civil War, money troubles forced it to close in 1863.

Bishop Daniel A. Payne of the African Methodist Episcopal Church stepped in. The AME Church bought the school and its assets from the Methodist Episcopal Church for $10,000, and Payne became its first Black president. A fire destroyed the main building in 1865.

In 1947 the state-funded education division split off and later became Central State University. An F5 tornado devastated the old campus in 1974. The campus area now includes the National Afro-American Museum and Cultural Center.

Timeline

  • 1856: Wilberforce University is founded by the Methodist Episcopal Church. (Wilberforce, OH) source
  • 1857: The first students graduate with an accredited bachelor's degree. (Wilberforce, OH) source
  • 1863: The AME Church buys the school for $10,000; Daniel Payne becomes president. (Wilberforce, OH) source
  • 1865: A fire destroys the main building. (Wilberforce, OH) source
  • 1947: The state-funded division separates, later becoming Central State University. (Wilberforce, OH) source
  • 1974: An F5 tornado devastates the old campus. (Wilberforce, OH) source

What it changed

  • Third historically Black college in the U.S.
  • Led to Central State University.

Why it matters

Early Black college.

Who gets the credit is disputed

The Ohio claim. The AME Church bought Wilberforce in 1863, and the university says that makes it the oldest private historically Black university owned and operated by African Americans.

The other claims. Wikipedia counts Wilberforce as the third historically Black college founded in the United States, after Cheyney and Lincoln in Pennsylvania, so its claim rests on private ownership and operation by African Americans.

Places in Ohio to see

Further reading

Sources

Confidence. Medium: the main facts were confirmed, but some details (often an address or ZIP code) were not.