On January 8, 1835, the Board of Trustees of the Mount Holyoke Female Seminary selected South Hadley for the location of its seminary. The ten acres of land they bought that October was farmland and apple orchards, fronting on the main road through the village. It extended east from the road, down the slope to Stony Brook, which ran between Judd's
Click the map to enlarge
paper mill at the lower end of the Upper Lake, and the grist mill by the outflow from Lower Lake. Construction problems caused delays, and it was still not finished when the first 77 students entered the Seminary on November 8, 1837. Extensive additions and alterations were made to the original 94-by-50-foot building, which was four stories high above a basement. In 1840-41, a 70-foot extension to the front of the building and a south wing were built. In 1845 the addition of a two story piazza enhanced its facade. The only other parcel of land acquired during Mary Lyon's administration became a part of the Seminary in 1846: a small lot to the east of Stony Brook.

There were also two residences to the north of the seminary property, near the church which faced the village common. One was rented to the Reverend Joseph Condit, the Secretary of the Board of Trustees; the other belonged to Dr. Elihu Dwight.

Mary Lyon died in 1849. She was buried on the grounds of the Seminary: a marble monument surrounded by an iron railing marks her grave.

Years of Transition: 1849-1889

Years of Transition: 1849-1889

Introduction

Chronological List | History of the Campus | Alphabetical List

Credits

Mount Holyoke College
Archives and Special Collections
8 Dwight Hall,
50 College St.
South Hadley, MA 01075
(413) 538-2013
 LITS Seal/Back to LITS page
Copyright © 1997,
Mount Holyoke College.
This page created by the Library
and maintained by