- L. L. Nunn
Lucien Lucius Nunn (b.
16 March 1853Medina ,Ohio – d.2 April 1925Los Angeles ,California ) was an Americanentrepreneur and educator who foundedTelluride Association andDeep Springs College . He received his higher education atOberlin College and in 1880 moved to Telluride,Colorado where he started a law practice and dealt in real estate. By 1890 he had become involved in gold mining, journalism, and banking within the small community. His bank, the First National Bank of Telluride, was the only bank in the county at the time.In order to help his mining operations prosper, Nunn financed the world’s first commercial A/C power plant. The plant, built by
George Westinghouse , became part of the Nunn’sTelluride Power Company which would later become part of Utah Power and Light. Nunn continued investing in the power industry and helped design theOntario Power Plant inNiagara Falls ,Ontario . To staff the power plants Nunn created a work study program called the Telluride Institute, headquartered in Olmstead. Upon completion of the course the graduates were sent on to gain further education through the issuance of scholarships. Many of these students went on to study atCornell University , where they resided at Telluride House, managed byTelluride Association , which Nunn founded.Nunn was forced to sell his portion of Telluride Power in 1912 due to disagreements with other stockholders, which led to the closure of the Olmstead educational site and the suspension of the Telluride Institute program.
Nunn attempted to restart similar educational programs a number of times, but with little success. Finally Nunn founded
Deep Springs College in 1917, a two-year college built on the "Swinging T Ranch" inDeep Springs Valley , California. The college is similar in style to the Telluride Institute, in that students must work while completing their academic requirements.Nunn died in 1925 as a result of
tuberculosis which he contracted a decade earlier. He was laid to rest on7 April 1925 in Forest Lawn Memorial Park,Glendale, California .References
* [http://swcenter.fortlewis.edu/inventory/Nunn.htm L.L. Nunn timeline] from Fort Lewis College Foundation, Center of Southwest Studies
* [http://rmc.library.cornell.edu/EAD/htmldocs/RMA01770.html L.L. Nunn papers] from Cornell University
* [http://www.deepsprings.edu/history/nunn.html L.L. Nunn page] from Deep Springs College
* [http://www.tellurideassociation.org/llnunn.html L.L. Nunn page] from the Telluride Association
* [http://www.telluride-house.com L.L. Nunn page] from the University of Michigan Branch of the Telluride Association
*Stephen A. Bailey, "L. L. Nunn: a Memoir". Ithaca, NY, Telluride Association, 1933.
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