Topic Guide to Louisiana State University

The information and links below include search tips and a selection of articles covering this topic in the digitized Louisiana newspapers. The dates and suggested search terms can help to further explore this topic on Chronicling America. For the most search results, try the search terms in different combinations, in proximity, and as phrases.

Significant Dates

1853 - Seminary of Learning of the State of Louisiana is established with legislation for a state institution of higher education
1860 - Seminary opens at Pineville with Col. W. T. Sherman as superintendent, name changes to Louisiana State Seminary of Learning & Military Academy
1861 - Louisiana secedes from Union, and students and faculty (including Col. W.T. Sherman) resign in order enlist as soldiers; Seminary closes June 31
1862 - Seminary reopens
1863 - Seminary closes after invasion of Red River Valley
1865 - Civil War ends and Seminary reopens with David F. Boyd as superintendent
1869 - Fire burns Pineville campus, prompting move to Baton Rouge where the Seminary is re-established at the Louisiana School for the Deaf, Dumb, and Blind
1870 - Seminary is renamed The Louisiana State University
1874 - Louisiana State Agricultural & Mechanical College is established in New Orleans
1876 - Louisiana State University merges with Louisiana Agricultural and Mechanical College
1877 - Louisiana State University and A&M College becomes a land-grant institution
1884 - William Carter Stubbs hired as director of the Sugar Experiment Station in Kenner
1886 - LSU campus moves to the federal garrison grounds in Baton Rouge
1893 - LSU plays first football game, losing 34-0 to Tulane
1897 - Audubon Sugar School becomes integrated into an LSU degree program requiring two years in Baton Rouge, and two years at New Orleans
1904 - Olivia Davis becomes LSU’s first female student, graduating in 1905
1906 - Seventeen women enroll as freshmen; Law school opens
1918 - Gartness Plantation is purchased by a group of LSU affiliates, later becomes site of present day campus

Suggested Search Terms

louisiana state university, l.s.u., louisiana seminary of learning, louisiana seminary of learning and mechanical college, louisiana state university and a&m, D.F. Boyd

Sample Articles