History

A Heritage Exceeding 150 Years

The year 2004 marked the 158th anniversary of the founding of Taylor University in 1846. During the year of 1846, the United States annexed New Mexico as a territory, admitted Iowa as the 29th state in the Union, and declared war on Mexico. Electric arc lighting was introduced in Paris, and Elias Howe in America patented the sewing machine. John Deere constructed the first plow with a steel moldboard.

During the same year, an American dentist W. T. Morton introduced ether as an anesthetic. In the literary world, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow published "The Belfry of Bruges" and Herman Melville published "Typee." In London, Charles Dickens introduced the first cheap English newspaper, the Daily News, and the Evangelical Alliance was founded. In Ireland the failure of the potato crop caused a famine, which would send thousands of Irish immigrants to America.

Also in 1846, the Smithsonian Institute was established in Washington D.C., and certain political and religious movements in America gained momentum in advocating the emancipation of black slaves and promoting expanded rights for women.

Forged in the fire of intense religious beliefs, Taylor University was destined to become one of the oldest evangelical Christian colleges in America. Conceptualized with the conviction that women as well as men should have an opportunity for higher education, Taylor University began as Fort Wayne Female College in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and then became Fort Wayne College.

Following the example of Oberlin College (which became the first coeducational college in America and the first to award college degrees to women in 1841), Fort Wayne College became coeducational in 1855. In 1890, the school merged with the Fort Wayne College of Medicine and changed its name to Taylor University in honor of Bishop William Taylor. In 1893, because of the population boom in the central part of the state, Taylor University moved to Upland, Indiana.

Meanwhile, Bethany Bible Institute started in Bluffton, OH in 1895. Later, in 1903 the school moved to its present location in Fort Wayne and became know as Fort Wayne Bible Training School. Through the years, names changed again to Fort Wayne Bible Institute, Fort Wayne Bible College and Summit Christian College.

In 1992, Summit Christian College asked Taylor University to take over the operations of the Fort Wayne campus, allowing Taylor University to re-established its presence in Fort Wayne. Since 1992, Taylor University Fort Wayne has doubled its enrollment and expanded the curriculum.

With this heritage, Taylor University entered the twentieth century. Taylor University's historian, Dr. William Ringenberg, noted, "The intellectual revolution at the turn-of-the-century cracked the spiritual foundations of major universities" in America by challenging the role of the Christian worldview. "This, coupled with the dehumanizing of education" and the unrest caused by "the inability of secular education to guide students in their quest for meaning" helped to further shape, strengthen, and define Taylor's Christian educational mission. Since 1846 Taylor has been faithful to the mission of training men and women for life-long learning to be ambassadors for Jesus Christ to our world in need.

As we enter the next millennium, the institution's administration, faculty, staff, and students stand committed to our heritage of Christian commitment and academic excellence.