Hamline University 1912-1932: A Quest for Excellence, Darker Times Ahead This period in Hamline University’s history began positively when, in 1912, alumnus Samuel Fletcher Kerfoot was chosen to succeed George Bridgman as president. Kerfoot’s enthusiasm for Hamline was great. At the first chapel service of fall…
Posts by Kristin Mapel Bloomberg
Mary Grace Arthur
Mary Grace Arthur: Expanding the Measures of Intelligence Hamline University was where Grace Arthur began a lifetime of assisting others. While she honed her thinking and writing skills as a member of the Browning Literary Society and as an associate editor of Maga, Hamline’s literary magazine, Arthur’s passion was not…
A Longer History of Medical Education at Hamline
Just prior to reopening in St. Paul, in April 1880 Hamline acquired the St. Paul Medical School and reorganized it as the St. Paul Medical College, a medical department of Hamline University.[1] But the partnership was discontinued after one year. It was no wonder. For even after planning to offer…
Julia Bullard Nelson: Friend of the Lowly and Down-trodden
Julia B. Nelson was “very independent in her thinking . . . in view of the customs of her day. She was subjected to unjust ridicule from thoughtless people.” “The person who is ahead of the times pays the penalty for being ‘radical’ until such ‘radicalism’ is accepted by…
Establishing A Presence in St. Paul
Hamline University 1880-1912: Establishing A Presence in St. Paul Anchored by a newly-constructed, steam-heated, five-story University Hall, Hamline University reopened to students in St. Paul on September 22, 1880. The scramble to the deadline was fierce, and all hands were called upon to prepare the new University. Certainly, Hamline University’s…
Helen Sutherland
Helen Sutherland (1842-1896) A.B. 1863, A.M. 1866 “She did well her part in life to make better men and women, better citizens, better fathers and mothers; and these things are her monument; not made of costly bronze or marble, but of the things which endure long after time and the…
The Hamline Plan – Est. 1949
Some quick notes on The Hamline Plan Course of Instruction … Established in 1949, not the 1980s The Hamline University community is rife with incorrect oral history in need of correction. A prime example is the notion that the “Hamline Plan” was created in the 1980s. The fact is, the…
Observations on the 1958 Board of Trustees meeting minutes discussing what to name the “New Dormitory for Girls”
From a 1983 Ramsey County Historical Society and Saint Paul Heritage Preservation Commission Historic Sites Survey: Significant details: “Box-like dormitory building with first floor faced with stone, upper floors faces with brick. Widely spaced windows. Double door entrances on north and south facades.” Significant site and landscape features:…
Emily and Frederick in Bannack City
The year following her graduation in 1869, Emily R. Sorin married Frederick A. Meredith. Frederick did not enlist in the war; instead, the Merediths headed West to territorial Idaho and Montana. They spent the winter of 1862-1863 in the boomtown of Bannack City. A small collection of Emily’s letters…
A political quote about Matthew Sorin
“It may readily be granted that there are many unpleasant things in politics. It is said that in the early days of Minnesota, Matthew Sorin, of Red Wing, was running for office in Goodhue County. He was a man of worth and character, but he was abused and slandered by…