This etching shows the Stanley Building which was the original classroom building of LaGrange Female College. It was located on Broad Street, one of the main streets in LaGrange, and is no longer in existence.
LaGrange Female Academy was incorporated by an act of the Georgia Legislature on December 26, 1831, though it had been in operation earlier. The school prospered with the support of prominent local trustees and under the leadership of Rev. Thomas Stanley and Major John Park. In 1846, brothers Joseph and Hugh Montgomery purchased the Academy, then located on Broad Street, and converted it to a degree-granting college named LaGrange Female Institute and later LaGrange Female College in 1851. Joseph Montgomery built College Home, later renamed Smith Hall, for himself and to accommodate female boarders attending the school. In 1851 the Auditorium was built but was completely destroyed in 1860 by fire, causing great damage to College Home. The Montgomery brothers sold the College to the Georgia Conference of the Methodist Church, South, in 1856 for the sum of $40,000. Local people, mostly Methodists, contributed half of the purchase money. The College operated throughout the Civil War. During Reconstruction, it was kept open in conjunction with another local school, Southern Female College, whose campus later burned. LaGrange College officially became coeducational in 1953, although six young men were admitted to the freshman class as day students during the 1935-36 school year (it would only last one semester as they were considered too much of a distraction). The first African-American student graduated in 1967.
The following books about LaGrange College's history are available at the Lewis Library:
Commemorating the College's 175th year, the book Since 1831: LaGrange College, is also available to read online.
Irene Birdsong's 1955 Master's thesis The History of LaGrange College is a treasure trove of information.
LaGrange College 1948-1978: The Waights G. Henry, Jr. Years details the governance of one of the College's longest-serving Presidents.
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