History of Mercer University
Mercer University was founded in 1833 in Penfield, Georgia, by Georgia Baptists. The school, under the leadership of Baptist minister Adiel Sherwood, was named for Jesse Mercer, a prominent Baptist leader who provided a founding endowment and who served as the first chairman of the school's Board of Trustees.
Initially a boys' preparatory school named "Mercer Institute," the 
school at its founding consisted of a red clay farm and two hewed log cabins, valued at approximately $1,935. The enrollment was 39 students and tuition was $35 for the year. Board was provided at $8 per month, and each student was required to supply his own bedding, candles, and furniture.
From its humble beginnings in Penfield, Mercer today is a dynamic and comprehensive center of undergraduate, graduate and professional education. The University has 7,300 students; 11 schools and colleges – liberal arts, law, pharmacy, medicine, business, engineering, education, theology, music, nursing and continuing and professional studies; major campuses in Macon and Atlanta; four regional academic centers across the state; a university press; two teaching hospitals; educational partnerships with Warner Robins Air Logistics Center in Warner Robins and Piedmont Healthcare in Atlanta; an engineering research center in Warner Robins; a performing arts center in Macon; and a NCAA Division I athletic program.
Its reputation for exceptional academics in an engaged learning environment continues to grow. For almost two decades, U.S. News & World Report has ranked Mercer among the leading universities in the South. The Princeton Review repeatedly ranks it in the top 10 percent of all colleges and universities in North America. The University has been named a “College with a Conscience” by The Princeton Review and College Compact and has been named to the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll for distinguished community service.
Historical Highlights
1833
Mercer Institute, the forerunner of Mercer University, is founded by Georgia Baptists in Penfield, Georgia, as a manual labor school for boys.
1838
Mercer’s first Board of Trustees is elected and Mercer Institute becomes known as Mercer University.
1839
First college classes begin.
Female Seminary is approved by the Mercer Board of Trustees.
1841
First college class is graduated.
1843
Principal college building at Penfield is destroyed by fire.
Early 1860s
Mercer is one of the few colleges in the South and the only one in Georgia to remain open during the War Between the States. When war was declared, students and graduates of Mercer responded “to defend their constitutional rights and sacred honor.” Most of the senior classes of 1861 and 1862 joined the Confederacy together.
1866
Mercer awards General Robert E. Lee, C.S.A., the honorary Doctor of Laws degree. Mercer is the only university to grant an honorary degree to General Lee.
1870
During the 1870 convention meeting, the decision is made to move the University to Macon. The end of the year marks the closing of the school at Penfield and the University moved.
1871
On December 1, 1871, Macon’s Mayor George S. Obear presents to President David E. Butler of the Mercer Board of Trustees bonds in the amount of $125,000 and a deed to six acres of land. Mercer relocates in Macon that year.
1873
A law school is organized and classes begin in February 1874. The first classes are held in the courthouse and in law offices.
1874
Construction of the Administration Building is completed at a cost of $100,000.
1880
The cornerstone of the new chapel building is in place. The chapel is dedicated in 1881, debt-free.
1888
Mercer’s semicentennial is observed and a campaign for endowment is launched.
1893
Mercer’s football team plays the University of Georgia. The game scheduled for Thanksgiving Day, 1892, is postponed until January 1893. Georgia triumphed, 50-0.
1895
On-campus housing becomes available to students for the first time.
1903
Mercer opens the School of Pharmacy.
1918
The School of Pharmacy closes.
During World War I, the Mercer Board of Trustees authorizes President Rufus W. Weaver to tender to the secretary of the Navy and the secretary of war the buildings and equipment of the University that they might be used effectively in service of the nation. The Student Army Training Corps is established at Mercer on October 1, 1918, and continues until the following spring. Following the war, Mercer discontinues systematic military training. Altogether, Mercer’s war dead numbers 14.
1919
Mrs. W. E. Jackson is the first woman to receive a degree from Mercer. Mrs. Jackson, who later becomes Mrs. Joseph Seth Weekly, is awarded the LL.B. degree.
1922
WMAZ Radio, with call letters standing for “Watch Mercer Attain Zenith,” goes on the air, located in the tower of the chapel building.
1927
Mercer turns the fledgling radio station over to the Macon Junior Chamber of Commerce.
1933
Mercer celebrates its centennial.
1939
Macon Baptist Pastors Union requests an investigation of the character of teaching in some of Mercer’s classrooms. After a 10-hour hearing held in Roberts Chapel on March 30, the Board of Trustees accepts the action of the special committee disposing of the charges.
1940
Willingham Chapel Building is rededicated and a new organ is installed.
1942
Mercer sets apart the Law Building and Roberts Hall for use by the War Training Service during World War II.
1943
The Navy V-12 School is established on July 1 and continues until October 1945. Mercer is one of nine institutions in the Southeast selected to give aviation instruction in the Navy War Training Service. During this period, 731 trainees receive basic aviation instruction in the Mercer V-12 program.
1947
In ceremonies held in Willingham Chapel and Ryals Law Building, the Walter F. George School of Law is named for Walter F. George.
1949
Mercer dedicates the restored Mercer Chapel at Penfield with Dr. Louie D. Newton, speaker.
1957
Construction is completed on the George B. Connell Student Center.
1959
The Southern School of Pharmacy in Atlanta merges with Mercer University.
1963
Sam Jerry Oni of Ghana, Africa, becomes the first black to enter Mercer. On April 18, Mercer trustees vote to admit qualified students without regard to race, and Mercer becomes one of the few private colleges in the South to do this before being required by the 1964 Civil Rights Act.
1965
Mercer dedicates the Eugene W. Stetson Memorial Library.
1967
Mercer dedicates Knight Hall of Humanities.
1968
The Hugh M. Willet Science Center is dedicated.
1972
Mercer dedicates the new School of Pharmacy building in Atlanta. Atlanta Baptist College merges with Mercer University and becomes known as Mercer University in Atlanta. Today it is known as the Cecil B. Day Campus.
1973
The Law School’s centennial is celebrated and Congressman Carl Vinson’s 90th birthday is observed.
1974
Construction of the Ida B. Patterson Infirmary is completed.
1976
Mercer acquires the Insurance Company of North America Building as the home of the Walter F. George School of Law under a gift-purchase agreement for $1 million. The property is valued at more than $4 million.
1978
The former Tatnall Square Baptist Church is rededicated as Newton Hall in honor of Dr. Louie D. Newton.
Mercer acquires the Overlook Mansion, now known as the Woodruff House. Later in the year, Mercer gives the mansion to the city of Macon, and after restoring the exterior, the city of Macon returns the mansion to Mercer in November 1981.
1979
Mercer dedicates the Law School building, with U.S. Attorney General and Mercer alumnus Griffin B. Bell on the program and Chief Justice Warren Burger, guest speaker.
1980
Mercer dedicates the restored Administration Building.
Inauguration ceremonies for Mercer’s 17th president, Raleigh Kirby Godsey, at the Macon City Auditorium.
Mercer dedicates the A. T. Davis Administration Building, College of Arts and Sciences in Atlanta.
Mercer dedicates the Sheffield Building, College of Arts and Sciences in Atlanta.
1981
Mercer dedicates the School of Medicine’s Education Building in Macon.
1982
Mercer dedicates the Lamar R. Plunkett Swimming Pool in Macon.
Mercer University School of Medicine admits its charter class of students in the fall.
1983
Mercer establishes the School of Business and Economics in Atlanta. The dedication of the Woodruff House, formerly known as Overlook Mansion takes place.
Mercer dedicates the W. G. Lee Alumni House in Macon.
Mercer dedicates the Monroe F. Swilley, Jr. Library in Atlanta.
The Plunkett-Sewell family commissions a Holtkamp pipe organ, specially designed for Newton Hall. The 52-rank Tracker instrument is one of the largest organs of its kind on the eastern seaboard, establishing Mercer as a center for organ performance and teaching.
1984
The Eugene W. Stetson School of Business and Economics is established in Macon.
The School of Engineering is established, and Mercer dedicates the Engineering Building in Macon.
The Walter F. George School of Law becomes the home of the National Criminal Defense College.
The College of Arts and Sciences in Atlanta becomes the Cecil B. Day College of Arts and Sciences in dedication ceremonies.
1985
The charter class of the School of Engineering begins its studies.
1986
Tift College of Forsyth merges with Mercer University.
1987
University College, formerly the College of Continuing Education, is established, with educational centers located in Macon, Thomaston, Griffin, Eastman and Douglasville.
Nine kaolin industries in middle Georgia join together to establish the world’s first Kaolin Industry Endowed Chair at the Mercer University School of Engineering.
Groundbreaking is held for a new 93,750-square-foot library building located on the main campus in Macon.
1988
Mercer’s Walter F. George School of Law receives the largest gift in the University’s history at that time—$14 million from George W. Woodruff.
1989
The University’s Board of Trustees votes to discontinue undergraduate liberal arts education on the Atlanta campus. The mission of the Cecil B. Day Campus in Atlanta is changed to focus on graduate and professional education.
1991
In April, the University breaks ground on a new education and research center for the Southern School of Pharmacy on the Cecil B. Day Campus in Atlanta.
1992
In July, the Southern School of Pharmacy moves from downtown Atlanta to the 300-acre Cecil B. Day Campus in northeast Atlanta.
1994
The University’s Board of Trustees, faculty, administration, and staff launch the Mercer 2000: Advancing the Vision Campaign, seeking $126 million for endowment and facilities.
The Board of Trustees approves plans to establish a School of Education and a School of Theology.
1995
In April, the University’s Board of Trustees approves plans to locate the School of Theology on the Cecil B. Day Campus in Atlanta. During its April meeting, it also votes to transfer University College’s programs to the Eugene W. Stetson School of Business and Economics, the School of Medicine, and the School of Education.
On October 1, Mercer enters into a 20-year lease with Bibb County for the management and administration of The Grand Opera House in downtown Macon.
1996
Construction is completed on the new 32,000-square-foot School of Theology building on the Cecil B. Day Campus in Atlanta. The School’s charter class of students is admitted in the fall.
Renovations totaling $7.6 million are completed in Boone, Dowell, Porter, and Shorter residence halls.
Through a gift/purchase agreement, Mercer acquires the former Georgia Natural Gas building, located on the corner of Poplar Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard in downtown Macon.
Mercer partners with the Macon Heritage Foundation to help renovate the Huguenin Heights neighborhood adjacent to the Macon campus.
1997
In April, the Board of Trustees approves naming the School of Theology for James and Carolyn McAfee. The inaugural convocation and dedication of the James and Carolyn McAfee School of Theology is held in October.
The former Findlay House, located next to the W. G. Lee Alumni House on Coleman Avenue in Macon, is restored and dedicated in May as the Tift College Alumnae House.
Construction is completed on a 26,557-square-foot academic facility for the Douglas County Center.
Construction is completed on a new 52,155-square-foot facility for the Mercer Engineering Research Center in Warner Robins.
The School of Medicine completes construction on a 10,000-square-foot expansion of its research wing.
The former Stetson Library is rededicated in September as Stetson Hall and converted into office and classroom space for the Stetson School of Business and Economics and the School of Education.
1998
On December 4, the University breaks ground on a 28,300-square-foot building for the Department of Music of the College of Liberal Arts.
1999
July 1 marks the 20th anniversary of R. Kirby Godsey as president of Mercer University.
The James and Carolyn McAfee School of Theology graduates its charter class in May.
Mercer breaks ground for a Greek Village in Macon and student apartment buildings in Macon and Atlanta.
Mercer completes renovations on two School of Medicine buildings in downtown Macon, including a 27,000-square-foot building for the Departments of Internal Medicine and Psychiatry and Behavioral Science on the corner of First and Pine Streets, and a 5,500-square-foot facility for graduate medical education on First Street.
2000
The School of Engineering dedicates the Lockheed Martin computer labs in March.
During a ceremony on April 20, Mercer dedicates the Jack Tarver Memorial Library.
Mercer completes a one-year $1.5-million full exterior renovation to the Administration Building in July.
Mercer breaks ground for an 8,500-square-foot student union ministries building.
In August, Mercer opens its new police station and seven new apartment buildings on the Macon campus and two new apartment buildings on the Cecil B. Day Campus in Atlanta.
In September, Mercer dedicates the new 18-building Greek Village.
Renovations are completed on Groover Hall, and it reopens in the fall as the new home of Interdisciplinary Studies.
Mercer and LaGrange College are co-recipients of a $123-million gift of property from Remer and Emily Crum. The 83-acre Century Center Park property is located near I-85 north of Atlanta. It is not only the largest gift in Mercer history at that time, but also one of the largest gifts from an individual to an institution of higher education in the nation.
The announcement is made that the 98-year-old Georgia Baptist College of Nursing, located in downtown Atlanta, will merge with Mercer University on January 1, 2001.
2001
The School of Education is renamed the Tift College of Education of Mercer University at the Trustees’ meeting in April.
Mercer announces the creation of the Center for Baptist Studies.
2002
President R. Kirby Godsey is named the recipient of the CASE III Chief Executive Leadership Award for extraordinary service and leadership in advancement and education.
The McAfee School of Theology receives full membership into the Association of Theological Schools (ATS) as an accredited school of theology.
The new Georgia Baptist College of Nursing building on the Atlanta campus is dedicated during the College’s centennial celebration.
2003
Mercer and Robins Air Force Base pay tribute to a partnership agreement for 20 years that sparked a School of Engineering on the Macon campus, an engineering research center in Warner Robins, and provided engineers to meet the engineering needs at the huge military installation.
Mercer dedicates its state-of-the-art recital hall in the McCorkle Music Building, naming it the Neva Langley Fickling Hall.
Mercer opens the doors to its newest Regional Academic Center in McDonough, providing opportunities for adult learners in Henry County and surrounding areas. The University’s programs in Griffin and Covington are merged into the Henry County location.
The University’s tenth academic unit, the College of Continuing and Professional Studies, is established from the former Division of Extended Education. The non-education programs in the Tift College of Education are moved to the new college.
Mercer purchases the Georgia Baptist Center, which was previously owned by the Georgia Baptist Convention and is adjacent to the University’s Atlanta campus. It becomes the Atlanta Conference and Administration Center.
2004
The University plays its first basketball games in the new University Center Arena during homecoming week, January 27-February 1. The remainder of the signature facility on the Macon campus opens for students, faculty, and staff on March 15.
The official dedication of the University Center and the Griffin B. Bell Board Room is held in April, following the Board of Trustees’ meeting.
Mercer is now participating in the Independent 529 Plan, a prepaid tuition plan that enables students to lock in future tuition at today’s prices.
President R. Kirby Godsey becomes the longest-serving president in the history of the University.
2005
Mercer partners with Piedmont Healthcare, one of the state’s prominent hospital systems, to establishes the Center for Health and Learning in Atlanta
The Townsend-McAfee Institute is established to offer graduate programs in church music that prepare musical artists for the ministry. The Institute is a collaboration between the Department of Music in the College of Liberal Arts in Macon and the McAfee School of Theology in Atlanta.
2006
After 27 years as president, R. Kirby Godsey steps down from his leadership role to become chancellor, and William D. Underwood, former interim president of Baylor University, former high-profile attorney and noted legal scholar and teacher, becomes the University’s 18th president on July 1.
The Department of Music in the College of Liberal Arts becomes the Townsend School of Music on July 1, 2006. Mercer Trustee Carolyn McAfee, widow of James T. McAfee, Jr., former chairman of Mercer's Board of Trustees, and her son and daughter-in-law, Tom and Julie McAfee, provided the founding endowment. The Townsend School of Music offers undergraduate and graduate music degrees formerly offered by the College of Liberal Arts.
The Townsend-McAfee Institute and Mercer University Press announce they will develop a new hymnal for Baptists and other Christian fellowships, slated for release in 2009. In early 2007, the name of the new hymnal is unveiled: Celebrating Grace: Hymnal for Baptist Worship.
The Robert McDuffie Center for Strings is established on the Macon campus, offering conservatory-quality music training in a comprehensive university setting. Under the leadership of internationally renowned violinist Robert McDuffie, the center is designed to provide highly talented string students the opportunity to learn with some of the nation's renowned string musicians.
Tift College of Education’s Educational Leadership Program offers a Doctor of Philosophy in P-12 School Leadership on the Macon and Atlanta campuses.
The 103-year-old Southern School of Pharmacy changes its name to the College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences on July 1. The name change reflects additional health science programs, including a physician assistant program, to be offered by the college in 2008.
The American Baptist Historical Society, with the largest and most diverse collection of Baptist historical materials and archives in the world, announces it will relocate to Mercer’s Atlanta campus. The ABHS, consolidating from facilities in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, and Rochester, New York, is expected to provide tremendous research opportunities for Baptist scholars and positions Mercer University and the McAfee School of Theology as a national center of Baptist scholarship.
Radio station WMUM-FM (Mercer University Macon), formerly WDCO-FM, opens on Mercer’s Macon campus. A partnership between Mercer and Georgia Public Broadcasting, the station provides local content to central Georgia public radio listeners from its broadcast studio on the Macon campus. The studio offers various media-related educational opportunities for Mercer and other area college students.
2007
The Baptist History and Heritage Society, founded in 1938 as the Southern Baptist Historical Society, relocates from Brentwood, Tenn., to Mercer’s Atlanta campus. An independent organization with historic ties to the Southern Baptist Convention, the society moves to the University’s Atlanta Conference and Administration Center, formerly occupied by the Georgia Baptist Convention, where the American Baptist Historical Society will be relocated.
Tift College of Education’s Educational Leadership Program offers its second Doctor of Philosophy degree with the Higher Education Leadership track on the Macon and Atlanta campuses.
Three teams of students and faculty inaugurate the Mercer of Mission program over the summer in Kenya, Brazil and Guatemala. The program combines academic credit with service-learning opportunities.
Mercer School of Medicine, as it celebrates its 25th year, announces it will open a second, four-year doctor of medicine program in Savannah in fall 2008. The program will be based at Memorial Health University Medical Center, where Mercer has had a clinical relationship since 1996 to provide instruction for part of the school’s third- and fourth-year medical students.
The Mercer Athletic Foundation is established to raise funds needed to support intercollegiate athletics.
The new $14 million Science and Engineering Building opens on the Macon campus.
As the University completes the new gateway entrance to the Macon campus off Mercer University Drive, off I-75, a new Hilton Garden Inn opens on that side of the campus.
The building housing the Douglas County Regional Academic Center is dedicated to longtime benefactors, Fred and Aileen Borrish.