Genesee College was founded as the
Genesee Wesleyan Seminary, in 1831, by the
Methodist Episcopal Church
The Methodist Episcopal Church (MEC) was the oldest and largest Methodist denomination in the United States from its founding in 1784 until 1939. It was also the first religious denomination in the US to organize itself nationally. In 1939, th ...
. The college was located in
Lima, New York, and eventually relocated to
Syracuse, becoming
Syracuse University
Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York, United States. It was established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church but has been nonsectarian since 1920 ...
.
Genesee Wesleyan Seminary
In 1831, the Genesee Wesleyan Seminary was founded in Lima, south of
Rochester, by the Genesee
Annual Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church. The Rev. Dr. Samuel Luckey was elected the first principal of the seminary, and was transferred from the New York Annual Conference to the Genesee Conference of the M.E. Church . He remained in office until 1836, when he was elected as editor of ''The Christian Advocate and Journal'', an important periodical for the M.E. General Conference.
In 1850 it was resolved to enlarge the institution from a seminary into a college, or to connect a college with the seminary. The Rev. Dr.
Benjamin Franklin Tefft was elected President of this endeavor. The name was chosen as Genesee College. However, the location was thought by many not to be sufficiently central. Its difficulties were compounded by the next set of technological changes: the railroad that displaced the Erie Canal as the region's economic engine bypassed Lima completely. In 1866, after several hard years, the trustees of the struggling college decided to seek a locale whose economic and transportation advantages could provide a better base of support. As Genesee College began looking for a new home, the bustling community of Syracuse, ninety miles to the east, was engaged in a search of its own. The rail age had expanded the prosperity brought by the Erie Canal, and the city was booming, but its citizens yearned for something more:
"What gives to Oxford and Cambridge, England, to Edinburgh, Scotland, to New Haven, Connecticut, their most illustrious names abroad?" asked one local writer. "Their Universities," he answered. "Syracuse has all the advantages: business, social, and religious – let her add the educational and she adds to her reputation, her desirability."[W. Freeman Galpin, Syracuse University: The Pioneer Years (Syracuse: Syracuse University Press,, 1952)]
After a year of dispute between the Methodist ministers, Lima and contending cities across the state, it was resolved to remove the college to Syracuse, New York. In 1869, Genesee College obtained New York State approval to move to Syracuse, but Lima got a court injunction to block the move, and Genesee stayed in Lima until it was dissolved in 1875.
At its founding on March 24, 1870, the state of New York granted the university its charter independent of Genesee College.
[ The university opened in September 1871.][ The college, its libraries, the students and faculty, and the college's two secret societies all relocated to Syracuse. Two buildings of the seminary and college were listed on the ]National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
in 1976.
Notable faculty and graduates
* Anna Smeed Benjamin (1834–1924), social reformer[ ]
* John E. Bennett (1833–1893), served on both the Arkansas Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of Arkansas is the highest court in the state judiciary of Arkansas. It has ultimate and largely discretionary appellate jurisdiction over all state court cases that involve a point of state law, and original jurisdiction ...
and the South Dakota Supreme Court
The South Dakota Supreme Court is the highest court in the state of South Dakota. It is composed of a chief justice and four associate justices appointed by the governor. One justice is selected from each of five geographic appointment districts ...
* Joseph Cummings, President of Genesee
* J. W. Eddy (1832–1916), builder of the Angels Flight funicular
A funicular ( ) is a type of cable railway system that connects points along a railway track laid on a steep grade (slope), slope. The system is characterized by two counterbalanced carriages (also called cars or trains) permanently attached to ...
railway in Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
* George B. Goodwin, Wisconsin legislator and attorney
* Elias DeWitt Huntley, graduate, professor of ancient languages; later president of Lawrence University
Lawrence University is a Private college, private liberal arts college and Music school, conservatory of music in Appleton, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1847, its first classes were held on November 12, 1849. Lawrence was the second colle ...
; Chaplain of the Senate
* Belva Ann Lockwood (1830–1917), attorney, politician, educator and author
References
{{Syracuse University
Syracuse University
Defunct private universities and colleges in New York (state)
Educational institutions established in 1831
1831 establishments in New York (state)
Educational institutions disestablished in the 1870s
1875 disestablishments in New York (state)
History of Syracuse University