Oberlin History
John Jay Shipherd and Philo Penfield Stewart founded both the college and the town of Oberlin in 1833. In 1835 the Lane Theological Seminary in Cincinnati banned its students from discussing slavery. Consequently, a group of anti-slavery students and a professor, led by trustee Asa Mahan, left Lane and came to Oberlin. Mahan persuaded Oberlin College to admit African American students, and he then became the college’s first president. Charles G. Finney also became active in Oberlin College, initially teaching theology in 1835 and later becoming president of the college from 1851 to 1866. In 1837 Oberlin admitted its first female students, making it the first coeducational college in the United States.
The incident known as the Oberlin-Wellington Rescue occurred in 1858. In Oberlin, U.S. marshals captured a fugitive slave named John Price and took him to Wellington, to eventually have him returned to his master in the South. When Oberlin residents found out about the capture, a large crowd of them proceeded to Wellington and forcibly set Price free, eventually taking him to safety in Canada. Many of the rescuers were imprisoned for their role in the incident, but all of them were released within a year.
Three men from Oberlin participated in John Brown’s raid on Harper’s Ferry in 1859. Around 1,000 Oberlin men fought for the Union in the Civil War (out of a total population of around 2,000 people).
In 1944, Oberlin students protested local barbers for refusing service to African Americans. Eventually, students and staff combined to purchase a barber shop that would serve White and Black customers.
Online Sources:
The Oberlin Heritage Center
http://www.oberlinheritage.org/index.html
The Oberlin Heritage Center preserves historical resources in Oberlin and offers guided tours of historic buildings.
Electronic Oberlin Group
http://www.oberlin.edu/external/EOG/Default.html
EOG publishes historical materials related to Oberlin on the web and also helps Oberlin schools educate the community about local history.
More information about important individuals in Oberlin history:
http://www.oberlin.edu/external/EOG/People.html
Oberlin historical timelines:
http://www.oberlinheritage.org/timeline1.html
http://www.oberlin.edu/external/EOG/OberlinTimeline.html
Current as of May, 2008.
