History
The college was conceived in 1884 when the Presbyterian Church's Wood River Presbytery, meeting in Shoshone, formed a commission to examine the possibility of establishing a Presbyterian college somewhere in the Idaho Territory. The commission found support for such a venture and in 1890 the Presbytery accepted an offer from a group of Caldwell citizens, led by William Judson Boone, to locate the institution in that community.
The college was founded in 1891 by Dr. Rev. William Judson Boone with the support of the Wood River Presbytery. It first opened its doors to students on October 7, 1891. Nineteen students showed up at the College of Idaho for the first classes in 1891. The first classes were held downtown in the Caldwell Presbyterian Church and a year later the college moved into its own downtown building. The campus moved to its present site on the east side of town in 1910 when Henry and Carrie Blatchley donated 20 acres (81,000 m2) of land. Sterry Hall, a classroom and administration building, and Finney Hall, the first residence hall, were built that year. Voorhees Hall, the second of what would become a total of five residence halls, opened two years later.
In 1893, it was incorporated under the laws of the State of Idaho and placed in the hands of a self-perpetuating Board of Trustees. Dr. Boone served as president of the College for 45 years until his death in 1936.
In 1991, the college changed its name to Albertson College of Idaho to honor alumnus and long-time donor Joe Albertson and his wife Kathryn. The Albertsons, who founded one of the country's largest supermarket chains, Albertson's Inc., were generous benefactors of the college.
On October 10, 2007, college president Bob Hoover announced that the name would revert to The College of Idaho, with the mutual agreement of the J.A. and Kathryn Albertson Foundation, to promote acceptance and gain financial backing from alumni who were unhappy about the original name change. This coincided with a ten million dollar donation by the Foundation to the College.
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