The Launch
At the very next Board of Trustees meeting in 1892, the trustees passed a resolution “that in view of the fact that a bequest of $25,000 had been made to the Cedarville College by the late Mr. William Gibson...that an effort be made to revive an interest in that institution, and that the pastors in the different congregations be requested to bring the matter before their people at an early day, and urge them to contribute liberally for the establishment of said college.” Dr. David McKinney, the first President of Cedarville College, later said of this bequest at the most critical moment, “It was as if Providence had determined that the ministry go on.” In May 1894, the trustees authorized the construction or rental of a suitable building and the hiring of teachers to begin classes. A home on Route 42 north of Cedarville, recently used as an academy, was rented, and the college opened in the fall of 1894 with 32 students. That home is still there today. No group picture exists of that first student body; the earliest photo of the students in the archives is from 1909 and of the faculty is from 1901, but these give a sense of the simplicity of the college experience during those early days. Strong enrollment for the first year clearly indicated that the college would need to construct its own facility soon.
