Morehouse College: A Legacy of Excellence and Leadership

Morehouse College stands as a beacon of education and empowerment for African-American men. Located in Atlanta, Georgia, it is the only historically Black college for men in the United States. This article delves into the history, significance, and impact of this prestigious institution.

Founding and Early Years

Morehouse College was founded in 1867, two years after the American Civil War, in response to the liberation of enslaved African Americans. The institution began as the Augusta Institute, established in Augusta, Georgia, by the Rev. William Jefferson White, an Atlanta Baptist minister and cabinetmaker, with the support of Rev. Richard C. Coulter, a former slave from Atlanta, Georgia, and the Rev. Edmund Turney, organizer of the National Theological Institute for educating freedmen in Washington, D.C. The school's primary purpose was to prepare Black men for ministry and teaching, meeting the intellectual, moral, and social needs of students.

The institution was founded to educate African-American men in theology and other subjects, at Springfield Baptist Church, the oldest independent Black church in the United States. The school received sponsorship from the American Baptist Home Mission Society, an organization that helped establish several historically Black colleges.

The first few years were challenging, with financial troubles leading to temporary closures and resistance from the white population of Augusta. In 1871, under the leadership of Joseph T. Robert, Augusta Institute began a period of stability.

Relocation and Name Changes

In 1879, the institute moved to Atlanta, the center of Black higher education in the South, and changed its name to the Atlanta Baptist Seminary. The new location at Elliott and West Hunter streets presented challenges due to noise and smoke from a nearby railroad yard and lumber mill. In 1885, the seminary moved to its present location in Atlanta’s West End neighborhood, on land given by a prominent Baptist and industrialist, John D. Rockefeller.

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In 1897, the institution again changed its name to the Atlanta Baptist College and granted its first baccalaureate degrees. The school entered a period of excellence and began to acquire the atmosphere of a true college, as numerous student organizations and athletic teams were founded.

In 1913, the school changed its name for the final time, becoming Morehouse College. The new name honored Henry L. Morehouse, corresponding secretary for the American Baptist Home Mission Society. One century prior, in 1913, Atlanta Baptist College was renamed Morehouse College after Henry Lyman Morehouse.

The John Hope Era

In 1906, John Hope assumed the presidency, becoming the first Black president of a college supported and controlled by white northerners. A native of Augusta, Hope was a graduate of Brown University in Rhode Island and had been a professor at Atlanta Baptist College since 1898. During his tenure, Hope envisioned an academically rigorous college that would be the antithesis to Booker T. Washington's view of agricultural and trade-focused education for African Americans.

Affiliation and the Atlanta University Center

In 1929, Morehouse officially affiliated with two other local colleges for African Americans, Atlanta University (later Clark Atlanta University) and Spelman College. Morehouse and Spelman served as the undergraduate institutions, and Atlanta University served as a graduate school, thereby providing the undergraduate institutions immediate access to graduate facilities in an era when Black students were denied entrance to southern research universities. This partnership evolved to become the Atlanta University Center, which now contains five member colleges. The affiliate members also chose Hope as the new president of Atlanta University. Morehouse is also a member of the Atlanta University Center.

The Impact of the Great Depression

Despite Hope’s success at fund-raising, the school struggled financially during the 1930s. Although other schools also experienced difficulties during the Great Depression, the situation became so critical at Morehouse that the Atlanta University Board of Trustees placed responsibility for Morehouse’s finances in the hands of administrators at Atlanta University and Spelman College.

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The Benjamin Mays Presidency

Morehouse emerged from this dark period in 1940, when Benjamin Mays became the school’s sixth president (1940-67). During his twenty-seven-year tenure Mays regained control of the college, and he enhanced its academic reputation. Holding a Ph.D. from the University of Chicago, Mays encouraged other faculty members to obtain their doctorates. He also encouraged students to question the established system of segregation that dominated the South during this time and to commit themselves to uplifting their race. During the presidency of Mays, a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Bates College and the University of Chicago, the number of faculty members grew, and those holding doctoral degrees increased from two to 34 out of 65 teachers.

During the early 1960s, many Morehouse students became involved in the civil rights movement and often received encouragement and support from Mays. In March 1960 Morehouse students Julian Bond and Lonnie King helped organize the Committee on Appeal for Human Rights and participated in an eighteen-month campaign to desegregate the businesses and restaurants in downtown Atlanta. Mays, who became a mentor to Martin Luther King Jr., presided over the growth in international enrollment and reputation.

Later Presidents and Milestones

Samuel H. Archer became the fifth president of the college in 1931 and chose the school colors, maroon and white, to reflect his own alma mater, Colgate University. In 1967, Hugh M. Gloster became the seventh president. The next year, Morehouse became the third historically Black institution (HBCU) to establish a Phi Beta Kappa Honors Society. In 1975, Gloster established the Morehouse School of Medicine, which became independent from Morehouse College in 1981.

Leroy Keith Jr., was named president in 1987. In 1995, alumnus Walter E. Massey, became Morehouse's ninth president. His successor, alumnus Robert Michael Franklin Jr. was the tenth president of the college. In November 2012, alumnus John Silvanus Wilson was announced as the institution's 11th president. In January 2018, David A. Thomas took office as the 12th President of Morehouse College.

Morehouse celebrated several historic milestones in 2013. The year also marked the 50th anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington, when Morehouse graduate Martin Luther King Jr., class of 1948, delivered his iconic "I Have a Dream" speech at the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. The year also marked the 50th anniversary of King's "Letter from Birmingham Jail".

In May 2013, President Barack Obama became the first sitting president in three-quarters of a century to deliver a commencement address in Georgia when he took part in Morehouse College's 129th Commencement ceremony. Franklin Delano Roosevelt had given a summer commencement address at the University of Georgia in 1938.

In April 2019, Morehouse announced that they will begin admitting transgender men for the first time in the year 2020. In May 2019, Robert F. Smith paid off the student loans of the Class of 2019. In June 2020, Reed Hastings and his wife Patty Quillin donated $40 million to Morehouse College to be used as scholarship funds for students enrolled at Morehouse. In January 2022, Morehouse announced the establishment of the Black Men's Research Institute.

Campus and Facilities

Anchored by its main campus of 61 acres (25 ha) near downtown Atlanta, the college has a variety of residential dorms and academic buildings east of Ashview Heights. Morehouse has 10 residence halls on campus. Approximately 60% of Morehouse students live on campus. The campus encompasses a Civil War historic site, where Confederate soldiers staged a determined resistance to Union forces during William Tecumseh Sherman’s siege of Atlanta in 1864.

Notable facilities include:

Archer Hall: Named after the fifth president of Morehouse College, Samuel H. Archer, holds the college's recreational facilities such as its gymnasium, swimming pool, and game room.
B. T. Harvey Stadium/Edwin Moses Track: A 9,000-seat stadium built in 1983. The track is named after the only alumnus to win an Olympic gold medal.
Brazeal Hall: A dormitory built in 1991. It housed athletes during the time of the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta.
Ray Charles Performing Arts Center and Aretha Robinson Music Academic Building: A 76,000-square-foot (7,100 m2) facility dedicated on September 29, 2010.
Chivers Hall/Lane Hall: The cafeteria of the college and has been featured in many movies.
Douglass Hall: Originally built as the school's student center but today serves as an academic readiness center.
DuBois Hall: A freshman dorm erected in 1973, named after philosopher W. E. B. Du Bois.
Franklin L. Forbes Arena: A 5,700-seat capacity arena, built for the 1996 Olympic Games. It is now the main gymnasium for the college's basketball team and holds many events year-round.
Graves Hall: Named after the second president of Morehouse College, Samuel T. Graves, is home to the Howard Thurman Honors Program and Bonner Scholars. When constructed in the 1880s, it was the tallest building in Atlanta.
Hope Hall: Named after John Hope, the first African-American president (fourth president) of Morehouse College.
Hubert Hall: A freshman dorm named after Charles D. Hubert.
Kilgore Campus Center: Houses administrative offices, as well as several seminar rooms and lounges.
Living Learning Center (LLC): Formerly known as Thurman Hall.
Martin Luther King, Jr. International Chapel/Gloster Hall: Built in 1978 as the new auditorium and administration building for Morehouse College, replacing Sale and Harkness halls.
Mays Hall: Named after the sixth president of Morehouse College, Benjamin Mays.
Merrill Hall: Became the chemistry building.
Nabrit-Mapp-McBay Hall: Erected in 1987 to house the Biology and Chemistry classrooms.
Otis Moss Jr. Residential Suites: Apartment, studio, and suite dwellings built in 2003.
Perdue Hall: A residences hall built around the time of the 1996 Summer Olympics.
Robert Hall: Named after Joseph T. Robert, the first president of the college, was erected to be the college's first residence hall.
Sale Hall: Named after the third president, was built to contain classrooms.
Shirley A. Massey Executive Conference Center: Named after the first lady of the ninth president of the college.
Walter E. Massey Leadership Center: Houses the Business Administration and Economics departments, the Bonner Office of Community Service as well as other offices.

Academics and Accreditation

Morehouse College is accredited by the Commission and Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) to award Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees. Morehouse offers more than 30 majors and the Howard Thurman Honors Program which is a selective academic program providing special opportunities for students of outstanding intellectual ability, high motivation, and broad interests. Morehouse is the nation’s top producer of Black males who continue their education and receive doctorates.

Morehouse College, along with other members of the Atlanta University Center, share the Robert W. Woodruff Library.

The King Collection

Morehouse College is home to a 10,000-piece collection of original documents written by Martin Luther King Jr. (referred to as the King Collection). The set was valued by the Library of Congress as being worth between $28 and $30 million. In June 2006, the College completed Morehouse’s most ambitious capital campaign-raising a record $112 million, which exceeded the Campaign’s goal of $105 million. The same year, Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin raised $34 million to Morehouse College for the Martin Luther King Jr. Collection.

Student Life and Traditions

New Student Orientation (NSO) is an eight-day experience that culminates with new students ceremoniously initiated as Men of Morehouse. They learn about the legacy of the college, traditions, academic divisions, the brotherhood, and the "Morehouse Mystique".

In October 2009, Morehouse College initiated a campus wide attire policy that prohibits students from wearing women's clothes, jewelry on their teeth, pajamas as classroom attire, du-rags or bandanas on their heads, or pants which hang below the waist at official college-sponsored events. This dress code is part of the Five Wells which holds that "Morehouse Men are Renaissance Men with a social conscience and global perspective who are Well-Read, Well-Spoken, Well-Traveled, Well-Dressed and Well-Balanced."

The Morehouse College Marching Band, better known as the House of Funk, is known for their halftime performances which combine dance and marching with music from various genres, including rap, traditional marching band music, and pop music.

Athletics

In sports, the Morehouse College Maroon Tigers are affiliated with the NCAA Division II Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC).

Notable Alumni

Morehouse College has been producing extraordinary leaders, visionaries and pillars of the community. The school’s long list of prominent alumni includes civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., filmmaker Spike Lee, Olympic gold medal winner Edwin Moses, and the first Black mayor of Atlanta, Maynard Jackson.

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