The founding of Livingstone College is celebrated on this date in 1879.
Livingstone College is among over 100 historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) in America. Located in Salisbury, North Carolina, it began as an educational institution for clergy in the African Methodist Church (A.M.E.). It started classes in a small house on seven acres of land donated by the Reverend Thurber.
Under the leadership of Bishop James Walker Hood, it operated for two terms, from 1879 to 1880 and from 1880 to 1881. Bishop Hood had been instrumental in nurturing Joseph Charles Price, a student in his wife's Sunday school in New Bern, North Carolina. During a trip to England, the Reverend Dr. Price raised $10,000 and, in 1882, was elected to the presidency of what had developed into Zion Wesley College.
The neighboring citizens of Salisbury contributed $1,000 to the college and invited the trustees to relocate to their community. The trustees accepted the invitation and purchased 40 acres of land and a house in the Old Delta Grove, thereby accommodating future growth and development of the institution. In 1887, at the advice of Price and by an 1887 Act of the North Carolina Legislature, the name Zion Wesley College was changed to Livingstone College in honor of David Livingstone, a white-British Christian missionary, philanthropist, and African explorer.
Livingstone is a coeducational, residential, church-related college. The college consists of two schools: an undergraduate College of Arts and Sciences and a graduate school of theology named Hood Theological Seminary. For over 120 years, Livingstone has endeavored to provide academic education that is entirely non-sectarian and open to men and women of potential, regardless of their race or national origin. The Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools accredits Livingstone College. Notable past alumni include Elizabeth Koontz, Emma C. Clement, and Selma Burke.
