Vassar College
Lydia Booth, a niece of Matthew Vassar, encouraged him to establish a women's college in the United States, which would be located in Poughkeepsie. In January 1861, the New York Legislature passed an act to incorporate Vassar College, one of the first women's colleges in the U.S. On 26 February 1861, Matthew Vassar presented the college's Board of Trustees with a tin box containing half of his fortune, $408,000 (approximately $9,700,000 in 2008 dollars) and a deed of conveyance for 200 acres (0.81 km2) of land to establish the campus. On June 23, 1868, Vassar delivered his farewell address to the Vassar College Board of Trustees; he died in the middle of delivering the eleventh page of the speech. In a bill enacted on 15 July 1870, the U.S. Congress waived any tax claim(s) to the donation to the college.
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Famous quotes containing the words vassar and/or college:
“I saw the best minds of my generation
Reading their poems to Vassar girls,
Being interviewed by Mademoiselle.
Having their publicity handled by professionals.
When can I go into an editorial office
And have my stuff published because I’m weird?
I could go on writing like this forever . . .”
—Louis Simpson (b. 1923)
“Jerry: She’s one of those third-year girls that gripe my liver.
Milo: Third-year girls?
Jerry: Yeah, you know, American college kids. They come over here to take their third year and lap up a little culture. They give me a swift pain.
Milo: Why?
Jerry: They’re officious and dull. They’re always making profound observations they’ve overheard.”
—Alan Jay Lerner (1918–1986)