After
surmounting steep ideological and financial
obstacles Mary Lyon was finally able to bring
her vision to
fruition. On November 8, 1837 the first class
of 77 students occupied the not yet completed
building.
The Seminary building stood on ten acres that
sloped from the main road down to the Stony
Brook. The
early years of the Seminary were characterized
by Lyon’s vision for a familial institution
with rigorous academic entrance requirements
and a curriculum
modeled after that of the prominent male institutions
of the time.