On This Day In Alabama History: Howard College Was Founded

By Alabama NewsCenter Staff

With a name chosen to honor British social reformer John Howard, the Alabama Baptist State Convention chartered Howard College in Marion on Dec. 29, 1841. In 1887, the school and its six faculty members relocated to the East Lake area of Birmingham. Women were admitted on a provisional basis from 1895 to 1897 and Howard officially became coeducational in 1913. In 1921, Howard College acquired the Cumberland School of Law from Cumberland University in Tennessee. In 1953, the school broke ground on its third campus, moving to Shades Valley in 1957. Howard re-instituted its master’s degree program in 1965, elevating it to university status. Because Howard University in Washington, D.C., already existed, the Birmingham school was renamed in honor of Frank Park Samford, who was chairman of the board.

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