Cokesbury College

Cokesbury College was a college in Abingdon, Maryland and later Baltimore, Maryland that existed from 1787 until 1796.

Cookesbury College was founded as the first Methodist college in the United States. Its name was a combination of the names of Thomas Coke and Francis Asbury, who were ordained the first two Methodist bishops in America at the meeting held on Christmas Day, 1784 at which it was also decided to found the college.

In December 1787 a Mr. Heath was inaugurated as the first president of the college. The college opened at that time with three instructors (including Heath) and 25 students. By September 1788 Jacob Hall was appointed the third president of the college. Due to the heavy turnover in both teachers and presidents, Francis Asbury's constant work on finding new people to fill these positions was key to the college continuing to operate. Among the professors at the college was Charles Tait, who later was a U.S. senator from Georgia and a federal judge.

In December 1788, there was an attempt to burn down the college, however the fire was put out by some of the students before it caused significant damage. In 1794, the college was granted a charter by the state of Maryland. It burned down on 4 December 1795. A large vacant building was then obtained in Baltimore which became the new home of the college. On 4 December 1796, the new college building burned down, and Cokesbury College ceased to exist.

Sources

• Circular of Information of the Bureau of Education Vol. 15, issue 2, p. 229-245.