CAMPUS
Abandoning Piedmont Mesa
In 1892, trustee debate over the future location of the College reached a head. Some (including Charles Sumner) argued for leaving the Preparatory Department in Claremont and building a new home for the College Department on Piedmont Mesa, as originally planned, while others (including President Baldwin) argued for keeping the two parts of the enterprise together in Claremont. Ultimately, concern about the difficulty and cost of maintaining facilities in two locations led to the decision to abandon plans for a campus on Piedmont Mesa, in favor of expanding the Claremont location, and to return donated land and pledges associated with the unfulfilled Piedmont project. The commitment to staying in Claremont was confirmed a few months later when the College’s leaders chose to site the College’s first academic building, Holmes Hall, on its Claremont campus.
ACADEMICS
Astronomy
Professor Frank Brackett, Pomona’s original faculty member in mathematics and Latin, began teaching astronomy in 1892, when Thomas Barrows donated a second-hand, six-inch telescope to the College.
Art and Design
A new School of Art and Design was added, separate from the College departments, as a branch of the Los Angeles School of Art and Design.
STUDENT LIFE
Foreign Missions
The first activity of the Student Volunteer Band for Foreign Missions, organized in 1892, was to contribute the sum of $75 for Armenian relief.
ELSEWHERE
- America’s first federally run immigrant inspection station opened on Ellis Island.
- Former President Grover Cleveland was elected over incumbent President Benjamin Harrison to win the second of his non-consecutive terms.
- James Naismith published the rules for basketball.