Ohio State University

How Ohio State University Was Founded: The Land-Grant History Behind the Ohio Agricultural and Mechanical College

Dan American Agriculture History Minute, Education, This Land of Ours

The Land-Grant Origins of Ohio State University: How a New College Was Chosen to Lead Ohio’s Future The founding of Ohio State University is a defining chapter in both Ohio’s educational history and the broader story of America’s land-grant movement. Born from the Morrill Act of 1862, the institution began as the Ohio Agricultural and Mechanical College—a school designed to …

land-grant universities

Land-Grant Universities: History & Native American Colleges

Dan American Agriculture History Minute, Education, This Land of Ours

Expanding America’s Land-Grant Tradition Most land-grant universities Americans know today—such as Iowa State University and Kansas State University—trace their origins to the landmark Morrill Act of 1862. This legislation established a new model for public higher education, focused on practical instruction in agriculture, engineering, and the mechanical arts. Following the act, states across the nation founded colleges and universities that …

Kansas State

Kansas State: America’s First Land-Grant University

Dan American Agriculture History Minute, Education, This Land of Ours

A Civil War–Era Beginning Kansas State University—initially named Kansas State Agricultural College—was founded on February 16, 1863, in Manhattan, Kansas. Remarkably, its establishment occurred during the American Civil War, a time when national conflict threatened the stability of institutions across the country. Yet Kansas leaders pressed forward, committed to building a university that would serve the new state’s educational and …