Biola University - History

History

Biola University was founded in 1908 as the Bible Institute Of Los Angeles by Lyman Stewart, co-owner of the Union Oil Company of California (subsequently known as Unocal and later purchased by the Chevron Corporation), and T.C. Horton, a minister and Christian author.

In 1912, the school appointed R. A. Torrey as dean, and in 1913 began construction on a new building in downtown Los Angeles at the corner of Sixth St. and Hope St., which included a 3,500-seat auditorium for church services by the Church of the Open Door, two large neon signs on top of the building proclaiming "Jesus Saves," and a set of eleven bells on which hymns were played three times each day. In 1949, the institution took the name Biola College, in 1959 it moved south to its present location in suburban La Mirada, and in 1981 it was renamed Biola University.

In 1917, the Institute published a four-volume version of The Fundamentals: A Testimony To The Truth (a series of essays affirming conservative Protestant and Reformed beliefs), which had originally been funded by Lyman Stewart and his brother Milton, and edited by R. A. Torrey and others.

In the late 1920s, religious disputes broke out within the Institute, and evangelist Charles E. Fuller (a former graduate) was drafted as second vice president to resolve the issue and to find a new dean and a president (Elbert McCreery and William P. White, both associated with Moody Bible Institute, were chosen to fill these posts).

During the Great Depression, the Institute suffered serious financial difficulties. In 1932, Louis T. Talbot, pastor of the Church of the Open Door, assumed the presidency and helped raise much-needed funds. During the next two decades, Talbot led a shift away from missions, instead concentrating on academic programs. The Talbot Theological Seminary became the Institute's first graduate school, and in 1977, the graduate programs of Rosemead Graduate School of Professional Psychology were acquired by the College and relocated to the La Mirada campus. A School of Business was added in 1993.