Austin College has a heritage that is unsurpassed in the history of Texas higher education. Named in memory of Stephen F. Austin, it received a charter from the State of Texas in 1849, making the school the oldest college or university in the state operating under its original name and charter. Sam Houston, Anson Jones, and Henderson Yoakum served on its original board of trustees. The college first held classes in Huntsville during the fall of 1850 and moved to Sherman in 1876. Today the school is a nationally ranked private liberal arts college committed to leadership, learning, and lasting values that brings a global perspective to its student body and programs.
Historian Light Townsend Cummins has been a member of the history department at Austin College for over 30 years, and he is also the Texas State Historian. This volume results from a collaborative learning project during which eight of his students researched and wrote this volume under his supervision. College archivist Justin Banks and a group of his students selected the images contained in the book. This volume provides a historical perspective for appreciating the distinguished history of Austin College, a story that extends across the last 160 years.