Johnson C. Smith University was established on April 7, 1867, as the Biddle Memorial Institute at a meeting of the Catawba Presbytery in the old Charlotte Presbyterian Church. Mary D. Biddle donated $1,400 to the school. The school was then named after her late husband, Henry Jonathan Biddle, who had died after the Battle of Glendale in 1862. The corresponding women's school was Scotia Seminary (now Barber-Scotia College).[5]
In 1876, the charter was changed by the legislature of the State of North Carolina and the name became Biddle University, under which name the institution operated until 1923.
In 1891, Biddle University elected Daniel J. Sanders as the first African-American as president of a four-year institution in the south.
From 1921 to 1922, Jane Berry Smith donated funds to build a theological dormitory, a science hall, a teachers' cottage, a memorial gate, and an endowment in memory of her late husband, Johnson C. Smith. She later donated funds for five more buildings and a campus church. In recognition, the board of trustees voted to change the name of the institution to Johnson C. Smith University.
In 1924, James B. Duke established the Duke Endowment. While the largest share of that the endowment's earnings are allocated to support Duke University, Duke's donation required that 4% of its earnings be given to the university.[9]
In 1932, the university's charter was amended, providing for the admission of women. The 65-year-old institution for men then became partially coeducational. The first residence hall for women, named in memory of James B. Duke, was dedicated in 1940. In 1941, women were admitted to the freshman class. In 1942, the university was a fully coeducational institution.
JCSU joined the United Negro College Fund in 1944 as a founding member. This fund was organized primarily to help church-related schools of higher learning to revamp their training programs, to expand their physical plants, to promote faculty growth and to create new areas of service.[10]
1867: The Henry J. Biddle Memorial Institute was founded by Samuel C. Alexander and Willis L. Miller. Mary D. Biddle, an excellent churchwoman of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, who, through appeals in one of the church papers, pledged $1,400 to the school. In appreciation of this first and generous contribution, friends requested that Biddle name the newly established school after her late husband, Major Henry Biddle. [11]
1867: The first class sessions were held in May in "Audience Chamber" of Seventh Street Presbyterian Church, then located in a section called "Log Town."[12]
1868: The permanent location for the school was established via the donation of eight acres (3.2 ha) of land from Colonel W. R. Myers.[12]
1869: Biddle Institute officially opens on the present site in September[12]
1869: The first president, Stephen Mattoon, was elected on October 9, 1869[12]
1871: The first class, made up of three students, graduated from the Seminary. Those students were B. F. McDowell, Calvin McCurdey, Eli Walker. [12]
1873: Twelve additional acres (4.9 ha) of land were purchased, extending the current site to 20 acres (8.1 ha). [12]
1876: Biddle Institute changes its name to Biddle University. [12]
1883: The Administration Building was erected. Additional land was acquired extending the site to 24 acres (9.7 ha). [12]
1884: William A. Holliday is elected as the second president of the university. [12]
1885: Stephen Mattoon returns to serve again, this time as interim president. [12]
1886: William F. Johnson is elected as the third president of the university. [12]
1891: Daniel J. Sanders is the first African-American elected as the president of the university. [12]
1892: Biddle University competes in the first intercollegiate football game between two historically Black colleges, winning against Livingstone College. [12]
1894: Biddle University holds its Quatro-Centennial Celebration. [12]
1895: Carter Hall, the first substantial dormitory, was erected. The dormitory was named in after Miss Mary A. Carter of Geneva, NY in honor of the donation she provided for its construction. [12]
1895: “The Gold and Blue” are named the official school colors, making their debut on Easter. [12]
1896: Additional acreage was acquired, extending the size of the campus to sixty acres (24 ha). [12]
1905: The first student newspaper, The Argus, begins publication. [12]
1907: Henry Lawrence McCrore is elected president upon the death of President Daniel J. Sanders. [12]
1911: Carnegie Library was erected with the aid of funding from the Carnegie Fund. [12]
1917: Biddle University celebrates its Fiftieth Anniversary. [12]
1917: Fifteen acres (6.1 ha) of land are generously donated to the university, a donation from the daughters of Stephen Mattoon. This donation increases the size of the campus to 75 acres (30 ha). [12]
1921: After the death of her husband, Johnson C. Smith (Crayne) (August 20, 1919), Mrs. Jane Berry Smith is interested in identifying worthwhile causes to donate to that would be of the most benefit. She becomes interested in Biddle University through her association with McCrorey and begins her benefactions to the university. [12]
1921: The first Greek letter organization is established. The Rho chapter of Omega Psi Phi fraternity was chartered on November 7, 1921. [12]
1922: The Science Hall and Johnson C. Smith Theological Dormitory are erected. [12]
1923: Biddle University in renamed Johnson C. Smith University by the board of trustees and the Division of Missions for Colored people in honor of the concerns and contributions of Mrs. Jane Berry Smith. The Charter of the university was amended on March 1, 1923, to legalize the name change. To keep the memory of Major Henry J. Biddle alive, the Administration Building was renamed “Biddle Memorial Hall”. [12]
1923: Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity is established on campus. The Alpha Omicron chapter is established on May 4, *1923. [12]
1924: James B. Duke creates an endowment for schools, hospitals, and retired and disabled ministers. Four educational institutions are added to the endowment: Trinity College (now Duke University), Furman University, Davidson College, and Johnson C. smith University. [12]
1927: Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity is the third national Greek letter organization to be chartered. The Alpha Epsilon chapter is established on December 10, 1927. [12]
1927: The Alpha Epsilon chapter of Phi Beta Sigma fraternity is established late in 1927. [12]
1931: Johnson C. Smith University holds its first Founders Day Celebration[12]
1932: In 1932, the university's charter was amended, providing for the admission of women to the senior division. The 65-year-old institution for men then became partially coeducational. [11]
1933: Johnson C. Smith University is given an "A" rating by Southern Association of Schools and Colleges. [12]
1947: President Henry Lawrence McCrorey retires after forty years of service. Hardy Liston is elected president. [12]
1947: Carter Hall is renovated, with a new structure being erected within the existing hull of the building. [12]
1951: Henry Lawrence McCrorey dies July 13, 1951[12]
1952: A revision of the university's charter is made that officially deletes reference to race. [12]
1955: In November 1955, the Henry Lawrence McCrorey Theological Hall was dedicated and provided a new home for the 88-year-old seminary and its library. [11]
1956: President Hardy Liston dies on October 20, 1956. J. W. Seabrook steps in as Interim President. [12]
1957: Rufus Patterson Perry is elected as president in April of that year. [12]
1962: Hardy Liston Residence Hall is erected. The building is dedicated later in April 1963. [12]
1965: The University Memorial Student Union is built. [12]
1966: Martin Luther King Jr. speaks on campus as a part of the Centennial Celebration that began October 12, 1966. [12]
1967: The university holds the main Centennial Celebration on April 7, 1967, in the new gymnasium with the theme of “New Dimensions in Higher Education”. [12]
1967: Three major construction projects are completed: The James B. Duke Memorial Library, Myers Hall (a dormitory for men), and Sanders Hall (a dormitory for women). [12]
1968: Rufus Patterson Perry resigns from his position as president. [12]
2003: JCSU opens a new state-of-the-art academic and sports facility, the Irwin Belk Complex. [11]
2008: Ronald L. Carter becomes the thirteenth president. [11]
2018: Clarence D. Armbrister, J.D. becomes the fourteenth President of Johnson C. Smith University. [11]
Academics
Johnson C. Smith University offers 24 different degrees to undergraduate students and one to postgraduates. Each student earns his or her degree through one of three colleges: the College of Arts and Letters, the College of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics), or the College of Professional Studies.
The Robert L. Albright Honors College is available to qualified high-achieving undergraduate students at JCSU.[13] The college is named after the 11th president of the university.
Metropolitan College offers undergraduate degree programs to adults to enhance their opportunities for career advancement and success. Metropolitan College provides students with flexible, convenient schedules and a variety of course styles including on-campus and online courses, as well as a Flex-Option for courses that include both online and in-class instruction. Evening courses at Metropolitan College are offered in criminology, social work, and business administration.
Colleges
The university is organized into three colleges:[14]
College of Arts and Letters
College of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM)
College of Professional Studies.
James B. Duke Memorial Library
The James B. Duke Memorial Library was built in 1967 in memory of James Buchanan Duke, a major benefactor to the university. Carnegie Library, the existing library at that time, was not large enough to meet the expanding academic programming and increasing enrollment. [12] In 1998, the library completed a $7 million yearlong modernization and reconstruction to allow the building to serve as an information hub in a digital age.[11]
The James B. Duke Memorial Library is also the home of a 8.5 by 20 feet (2.6 by 6.1 m). mural created painted by Philadelphia artist Paul F. Keene Jr. Keene that captures the history, growth, and development of the university. The vibrant mural illustrates the founding of the university by S. L. Alexander and W. L. Miller on April 7, 1867, the original two students, the outstanding contributors to the school, historic buildings, and the first seven presidents of the university. The mural features a portrait of Jane Berry Smith who donated several buildings to the university in the early 1920s and for whom the board of trustees renamed the school from Biddle University. Also featured is James Buchanan Duke, a prominent North Carolina business man, who established an endowment in 1924 that included the university and the man for whom the library is named. [12]
Student activities
Due to its location near downtown Charlotte, North Carolina, there are many social and cultural activities for JCSU students and faculty to enjoy, including professional sporting events, theater/movies, concerts, art exhibits, bands, chorale, poetry readings, and dance, among others.
Clayton and Mel Watt were the first African Americans elected to the House of Representatives from North Carolina since 1898 (since Clayton won the special election, she took office before Watt).
One of the first black students admitted to the Harry Harding High School in the United States. After four days of harassment that threatened her safety, her parents forced her to withdraw from the school.
First African-American to hold the rank of Ambassador of the United States, serving as ambassador to Liberia (where he had been serving with the rank of minister) from 1949 through 1953.
Division II Collegiate Indoor and Outdoor Regional and National Track Athlete of the Year in 2010 and 2011. Green was a member of the 2012 Summer Olympics Jamaican National Olympic Track and Field team.
Democratic politician who has served in the North Carolina House of Representatives as the member from North Carolina's 29th representative district since 2006.
First African-American to run for Governor of North Carolina. Dentist. Civil rights activist who played a central role in integrating Charlotte schools, hospitals, and public spaces.
African-American physician and medical administrator. She was West Virginia's mental health commissioner in 1962, and was the first woman and African-American to hold the position.
Cary C Mitchell
1983
Nationally known men’s clothier/fashion designer who for years made dress clothes for professional basketball and football players including Tiger Woods and the inaugural game uniform for the Charlotte Bobcats in 2004.
Founder of Johnson C. Smith University athletic booster program the 100 Club. He became a successful Charlotte businessman, contributing to Johnson C Smith University, NAACP, Colored NC Police Association, Democratic Party and YMCA.
