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<div id="contentSub"><div id="mw-content-subtitle"></div></div> <div id="mw-content-text" class="mw-body-content"><div class="mw-content-ltr mw-parser-output" lang="en" dir="ltr"><p> The title of <b>oldest public university in the United States</b> is claimed by three <a href="/wiki/Universities" class="mw-redirect" title="Universities">universities</a>: the <a href="/wiki/University_of_Georgia" title="University of Georgia">University of Georgia</a>, the <a href="/wiki/University_of_North_Carolina_at_Chapel_Hill" title="University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill">University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill</a>, and the <a href="/wiki/College_of_William_and_Mary" class="mw-redirect" title="College of William and Mary">College of William and Mary</a>. Each has a distinct basis for the claim: North Carolina being the first to hold classes and graduate students as a public institution, Georgia being the first created by state charter, and William & Mary having the oldest founding and operations dates of any current public university, but it was a private institution for over 200 years, until 1906. While all three universities closed for a time as a result of the <a href="/wiki/American_Civil_War" title="American Civil War">American Civil War</a>, William and Mary was closed for over two decades. </p> <meta property="mw:PageProp/toc" /> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="University_of_North_Carolina_at_Chapel_Hill">University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Oldest_public_university_in_the_United_States&action=edit&section=1" title="Edit section: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1236090951">.mw-parser-output .hatnote{font-style:italic}.mw-parser-output div.hatnote{padding-left:1.6em;margin-bottom:0.5em}.mw-parser-output .hatnote i{font-style:normal}.mw-parser-output .hatnote+link+.hatnote{margin-top:-0.5em}@media print{body.ns-0 .mw-parser-output .hatnote{display:none!important}}</style><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Main article: <a href="/wiki/University_of_North_Carolina_at_Chapel_Hill" title="University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill">University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill</a></div> <p>The <a href="/wiki/Constitution_of_North_Carolina" title="Constitution of North Carolina">Constitution of North Carolina</a> of 1776 provided that "learning . . . be duly encouraged, and promoted, in one or more universities."<sup id="cite_ref-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-1"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The legislature chartered the <a href="/wiki/University_of_North_Carolina_at_Chapel_Hill" title="University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill">University of North Carolina</a> in 1789, and construction on the campus in <a href="/wiki/Chapel_Hill,_North_Carolina" title="Chapel Hill, North Carolina">Chapel Hill</a> began in 1793. The university became the first public institution of higher learning in the U.S. to open its doors in 1795 when it completed construction on its first building, Old East, and admitted its first students. Graduating its first class in 1798, UNC was the only public institution to confer degrees in the 18th century.<sup id="cite_ref-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-2"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>2<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="University_of_Georgia">University of Georgia</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Oldest_public_university_in_the_United_States&action=edit&section=2" title="Edit section: University of Georgia"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Main article: <a href="/wiki/University_of_Georgia" title="University of Georgia">University of Georgia</a></div> <p>Located in <a href="/wiki/Athens,_Georgia" title="Athens, Georgia">Athens, Georgia</a>, the <a href="/wiki/University_of_Georgia" title="University of Georgia">University of Georgia</a> received its charter from the state in 1785, making the University of Georgia the first state-chartered public university in the United States. As a result of this distinction, the University of Georgia brands itself as the "birthplace of the American system of higher education." A site was selected for the university, but it did not begin admitting students until 1801,<sup id="cite_ref-3" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> six years after the University of North Carolina.<sup id="cite_ref-FOOTNOTEBoney2000ix_4-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-FOOTNOTEBoney2000ix-4"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>4<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The first graduation was held in 1804.<sup id="cite_ref-5" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-5"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>5<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-FOOTNOTEBoney20003_6-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-FOOTNOTEBoney20003-6"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>6<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The first building was completed in 1805.<sup id="cite_ref-7" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-7"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>7<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="College_of_William_&_Mary"><span id="College_of_William_.26_Mary"></span>College of William & Mary</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Oldest_public_university_in_the_United_States&action=edit&section=3" title="Edit section: College of William & Mary"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Main article: <a href="/wiki/College_of_William_%26_Mary" title="College of William & Mary">College of William & Mary</a></div> <p>Now a public university, <a href="/wiki/College_of_William_%26_Mary" title="College of William & Mary">College of William & Mary</a> in <a href="/wiki/Williamsburg,_Virginia" title="Williamsburg, Virginia">Williamsburg, Virginia</a>, was founded by <a href="/wiki/Royal_charter" title="Royal charter">royal charter</a> in 1693, making it the second-oldest college or university in the United States after <a href="/wiki/Harvard_University" title="Harvard University">Harvard University</a>. The college severed formal ties with <a href="/wiki/Kingdom_of_Great_Britain" title="Kingdom of Great Britain">Britain</a> after the <a href="/wiki/Colonial_America" class="mw-redirect" title="Colonial America">colonies</a> <a href="/wiki/United_States_Declaration_of_Independence" title="United States Declaration of Independence">declared independence</a>, but remained a private institution until financial troubles forced its closure after the <a href="/wiki/American_Civil_War" title="American Civil War">Civil War</a>. It re-opened in 1888, but did not become public until continued financial troubles forced it to accept funding from the <a href="/wiki/Commonwealth_(U.S._state)" title="Commonwealth (U.S. state)">Commonwealth</a> of Virginia beginning in 1906.<sup id="cite_ref-8" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="See_also">See also</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Oldest_public_university_in_the_United_States&action=edit&section=4" title="Edit section: See also"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/First_university_in_the_United_States" title="First university in the United States">First university in the United States</a></li></ul> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="References">References</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Oldest_public_university_in_the_United_States&action=edit&section=5" title="Edit section: References"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1239543626">.mw-parser-output .reflist{margin-bottom:0.5em;list-style-type:decimal}@media screen{.mw-parser-output .reflist{font-size:90%}}.mw-parser-output .reflist .references{font-size:100%;margin-bottom:0;list-style-type:inherit}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns-2{column-width:30em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns-3{column-width:25em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns{margin-top:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns ol{margin-top:0}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns li{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}.mw-parser-output .reflist-upper-alpha{list-style-type:upper-alpha}.mw-parser-output .reflist-upper-roman{list-style-type:upper-roman}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-alpha{list-style-type:lower-alpha}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-greek{list-style-type:lower-greek}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-roman{list-style-type:lower-roman}</style><div class="reflist reflist-columns references-column-width reflist-columns-2"> <ol class="references"> <li id="cite_note-1"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-1">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1238218222">.mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit;word-wrap:break-word}.mw-parser-output .citation q{quotes:"\"""\"""'""'"}.mw-parser-output .citation:target{background-color:rgba(0,127,255,0.133)}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-free.id-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/65/Lock-green.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-limited.id-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .id-lock-registration.id-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-subscription.id-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg")right 0.1em center/12px no-repeat}body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-free a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-limited a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-registration a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-subscription a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background-size:contain;padding:0 1em 0 0}.mw-parser-output .cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:none;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;color:var(--color-error,#d33)}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{color:var(--color-error,#d33)}.mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{display:none;color:#085;margin-left:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right{padding-right:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .citation .mw-selflink{font-weight:inherit}@media screen{.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{color:#18911f}}@media screen and (prefers-color-scheme:dark){html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{color:#18911f}}</style><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.nhinet.org/ccs/docs/nc-1776.htm">"Article 41"</a>. <a href="/wiki/Constitution_of_North_Carolina" title="Constitution of North Carolina">Constitution of North Carolina</a>. December 18, 1776<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">July 7,</span> 2017</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=Article+41&rft.pub=Constitution+of+North+Carolina.&rft.date=1776-12-18&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nhinet.org%2Fccs%2Fdocs%2Fnc-1776.htm&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AOldest+public+university+in+the+United+States" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-2"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-2">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://museum.unc.edu/">"The Carolina Story: A Virtual Museum of the University History"</a>. <i>museum.unc.edu</i>. University of North Carolina<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">July 7,</span> 2017</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=museum.unc.edu&rft.atitle=The+Carolina+Story%3A+A+Virtual+Museum+of+the+University+History&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fmuseum.unc.edu%2F&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AOldest+public+university+in+the+United+States" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-3"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-3">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFBoney2000" class="citation book cs1">Boney, F. N. (2000). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://books.google.com/books?id=LYEjvos3vD8C"><i>A Pictorial History of the University of Georgia</i></a>. University of Georgia Press. p. 3. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-8203-2198-1" title="Special:BookSources/978-0-8203-2198-1"><bdi>978-0-8203-2198-1</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=A+Pictorial+History+of+the+University+of+Georgia&rft.pages=3&rft.pub=University+of+Georgia+Press&rft.date=2000&rft.isbn=978-0-8203-2198-1&rft.aulast=Boney&rft.aufirst=F.+N.&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fbooks.google.com%2Fbooks%3Fid%3DLYEjvos3vD8C&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AOldest+public+university+in+the+United+States" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-FOOTNOTEBoney2000ix-4"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEBoney2000ix_4-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><a href="#CITEREFBoney2000">Boney 2000</a>, p. ix.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-5"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-5">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFReed" class="citation book cs1">Reed, Thomas Walter. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://dlg.galileo.usg.edu/cgi-bin/ebind2html.pl/reed_c02?seq=49"><i>History of the University of Georgia</i></a>. pp. 61–62 – via Digital Library of Georgia.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=History+of+the+University+of+Georgia&rft.pages=61-62&rft.aulast=Reed&rft.aufirst=Thomas+Walter&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fdlg.galileo.usg.edu%2Fcgi-bin%2Febind2html.pl%2Freed_c02%3Fseq%3D49&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AOldest+public+university+in+the+United+States" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-FOOTNOTEBoney20003-6"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEBoney20003_6-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><a href="#CITEREFBoney2000">Boney 2000</a>, p. 3.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-7"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-7">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFReed" class="citation book cs1">Reed, Thomas Walter. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://dlg.galileo.usg.edu/cgi-bin/ebind2html.pl/reed_c02?seq=80"><i>History of the University of Georgia</i></a>. p. 90 – via Digital Library of Georgia.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=History+of+the+University+of+Georgia&rft.pages=90&rft.aulast=Reed&rft.aufirst=Thomas+Walter&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fdlg.galileo.usg.edu%2Fcgi-bin%2Febind2html.pl%2Freed_c02%3Fseq%3D80&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AOldest+public+university+in+the+United+States" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-8"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-8">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.wm.edu/about/history/chronology/index.php">"Historical Chronology of William & Mary"</a>. College of William & Mary<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">July 7,</span> 2017</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=Historical+Chronology+of+William+%26+Mary&rft.pub=College+of+William+%26+Mary&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wm.edu%2Fabout%2Fhistory%2Fchronology%2Findex.php&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AOldest+public+university+in+the+United+States" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> </ol></div>    </div><noscript><img src="https://login.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:CentralAutoLogin/start?useformat=desktop&type=1x1&usesul3=0" alt="" width="1" height="1" style="border: none; position: absolute;"></noscript> <div class="printfooter" data-nosnippet="">Retrieved from "<a dir="ltr" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Oldest_public_university_in_the_United_States&oldid=1262489097">https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Oldest_public_university_in_the_United_States&oldid=1262489097</a>"</div></div> <div id="catlinks" class="catlinks" data-mw="interface"><div id="mw-normal-catlinks" class="mw-normal-catlinks"><a href="/wiki/Help:Category" title="Help:Category">Categories</a>: <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Category:History_of_universities_and_colleges_in_the_United_States" title="Category:History of universities and colleges in the United States">History of universities and colleges in the United States</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Public_universities_in_the_United_States" title="Category:Public universities in the United States">Public universities in the United States</a></li></ul></div><div id="mw-hidden-catlinks" class="mw-hidden-catlinks mw-hidden-cats-hidden">Hidden categories: <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Articles_with_short_description" title="Category:Articles with short description">Articles with short description</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Short_description_with_empty_Wikidata_description" title="Category:Short description with empty Wikidata description">Short description with empty Wikidata description</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Use_mdy_dates_from_July_2018" title="Category:Use mdy dates from July 2018">Use mdy dates from July 2018</a></li></ul></div></div> </div> </main> </div> <div class="mw-footer-container"> <footer id="footer" class="mw-footer" > <ul id="footer-info"> <li id="footer-info-lastmod"> This page was last edited on 11 December 2024, at 18:12<span class="anonymous-show"> (UTC)</span>.</li> <li id="footer-info-copyright">Text is available under the <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Text_of_the_Creative_Commons_Attribution-ShareAlike_4.0_International_License" title="Wikipedia:Text of the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License">Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License</a>; additional terms may apply. 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