The History of Springfield College (1937)

“The History of Springfield College” is a thirty-page document written in 1937 by Elton Lorimer Williams, a graduate student at Springfield College. It covers the school’s history in chronological order and is divided into six chapters that cover each of the school’s name changes: The School for Christian Workers (1885-1890), The International YMCA Training School (1890-1912), The International YMCA College (1912-1916), Springfield College (1916-1936), The Graduate Department (1937), and Outstanding Contributions. These chapters cover a wide range of subjects, such as presidents, building, fundraising, courses, admissions, school clubs, freshmen camp, the student senate, and publications. The second, third, and fourth chapters are all divided into subheadings by academic year. Chapter one covers the creation of the School for Christian Workers by David Allen Reed, a pastor and the president of the board of trustees. The school opened in September 1885, but their first building, which faced Winchester Park in Springfield, was not completed until March 1887. In 1888, the college began to offer a one-year course for graduates. Chapter two begins late in 1890, when a recently-founded school in Chicago also took the same name as the YMCA Training School. In order to differentiate the two, the Springfield school became the International YMCA Training School in 1891. During this time, the school adopted an emblem, split into two entities, and purchased the grounds on which the college now stands. It briefly touches on the invention of basketball, construction of new buildings, and history of the college’s relation with Lake Massasoit. Chapter three covers the school’s time as the International YMCA College. Like the last chapter, it is broken into subheadings for each academic year. According to the author, the school changed its name to the International YMCA Training College because the state of Massachusetts changed the name of its Truant Schools to Training Schools. This chapter also discusses the effects of World War I on the school. Chapter four begins in the 1916-1917 academic year. During this time, the school began referring to itself as Springfield College, but they were not officially incorporated as such until 1954. The school began offering short intensive courses to equip people for war work overseas. Chapter five begins in 1937 and focuses on the integration and extension of its graduate department. This was a “move to establish the college as a superior school, unique in its field,” in the face of outside pressure for physical education teachers with graduate degree. Chapter six is only one page long and is split into six subheadings that don’t correspond with the chapters and are not chronological. The very last page is a brief bibliography.Cover is extremely fragile and damaged on the sides; The cover and back cover were not scanned; On the front cover the following information was listed: History of Education for Dr. Minard, The History of Springfield College by E. L. Williams