Early years Morehouse College

a view of entrance campus courtyard.

in 1879, institute moved own location , changed name atlanta baptist seminary. later acquired 4-acre (1.6 ha) campus in downtown atlanta. in 1885, samuel t. graves became second president. year seminary moved present location, on land donated prominent baptist , industrialist, john d. rockefeller. in 1890, george sale became seminary s third president.

in 1906 john hope became first african-american president , led institution s growth in enrollment , academic stature. envisioned academically rigorous college antithesis booker t. washington s view of agricultural , trade-focused education african-americans. in 1913, college renamed morehouse college, in honor of henry l. morehouse, corresponding secretary of american baptist home mission society (who had long organized rockefeller , society s support college). morehouse entered cooperative agreement clark college , spelman college in 1929 , later expanded association form atlanta university center.

samuel h. archer became fifth president of college in 1931 , selected school colors, maroon , white, reflect own alma mater, colgate university. benjamin mays became president in 1940. mays, mentor martin luther king jr., presided on growth in international enrollment , reputation. during 1960s, morehouse students actively involved in civil rights movement in atlanta. mays speeches instrumental in shaping personal development of morehouse students during tenure.

in 1967, hugh m. gloster became seventh president. following year, college s phi beta kappa honors society founded. in 1975, gloster established morehouse school of medicine, became independent morehouse college in 1981. gloster established dual-degree program in engineering georgia institute of technology, university of michigan , boston university.