Old College

A little temporary cabin was built in 1851 to serve as the university, while Old Main was under construction. It is called the "Old College," and was moved to the new campus in 1958, as the only intact structure from this historic campus to survive. It sat right here, on University Ridge, for most of its history.

The cabin, when it was used for the first three years of Furman University in Greenville, could hold two classes simultaneously: James C. Furman teaching on one side, while Charles Judson taught on the other. This is hard to imagine: the entire structure is tiny, the size of a modern living room.

Even earlier than the rest of campus, the little cabin was slated for demolition in June of 1910, as the building had sat in disrepair. Quaternion Club (the highest honors society at Furman) offered to take the building and whitewash it every year, as a tradition for its members. To this day, Quaternion Club uses the Old College as a clubhouse for meetings and gatherings. (Furman Magazines Vol. 1-3 and 4-6)

If you've ever been to walk around the contemporary Furman lake, you've probably passed the Old College without notice--it sits right at the feet of the Bell Tower peninsula, off a traffic circle made of bricks from Old Main. And it is still kept up by the same group of students--Quaternion Club!

Sources Used:

The Furman University Magazine Vol.1-3 Nov.1951-Oct.1954. Furman University, Special Collections and Archives.

The Furman University Magazine Vol.4-6 Dec. 1954-Oct.1957. Furman University, Special Collections and Archives.

Robert Norman Daniel, Furman University, A History. Furman University, 1951.