The Council of Independent Colleges: Historic Campus Architecture Project

Original college building

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Original College Building (front facade), Asbury College

Original College Building (side view), Asbury College

Institution Name: Asbury College
Original/Historic Place Name: unknown
Location on Campus: Jewell St.
Date(s) of Construction:

1890	original construction Local craftsmen [attr. to]
1932	relocation and reconstruction

Designer: local craftsmen (attr. to)
Type of Place: Individual building
Style: Regionalist/Vernacular (Glossary)
Significance: education, history, religion
Narrative: see below
References: see below

Materials:

Foundation: originally none, now set in concrete

Walls: wood

Roof: shingle

Function:

ca. 1890	old main (entire college program from September until November, when a new larger, building was used)
ca. 2004-present (2006)	other (temporary office space)
ca. 2004-present (2006)	chapel

Narrative:
The original College building was put up by local craftsmen in 1890 over a period of just a few weeks. It is a modest vernacular structure set in a green space much used by residents of nearby adjoining facilities. The building's significance lies in its relationship to the founding of Asbury College and the culmination of the life work of its founder, John Wesley Hughes. Asbury was the first non-denominational Christian college in the U.S. to be dedicated to the doctrine and experience of Wesleyan "holiness." An early trustee, L. L. Pickett, called it the "first distinctive holiness college." Over the years Asbury has been a leading center for the production of well-trained and dedicated educators, pastors, social workers, Salvation Army officers (the leading institution in the U.S. in that regard), and missionaries.

The original Asbury building was built on another site and moved onto the present campus after the Alumni purchased and rebuilt it in 1932. The buildings along Macklem Drive were designed and built to a pattern design to complement one another. Other buildings were simply placed in convenient places on campus. The College has had a master plan for over a decade.

This "embryo of Asbury College" opened September 2, 1890; there were three teachers and eleven students. Cost of the original six-acre tract and this building was $1,500, raised by local subscription.

References:

Hughes, John Wesley. The Autobiography of John Wesley Hughes. Louisville, KY: Pentecostal Publishing Company, 1923.

McKee, Earle Stanley. "The Early History of Asbury College, 1890-1910." M. A. thesis, University of Kentucky, 1926.

McKinley, E. H. "A Brief History of Asbury College, 1890-2001." Unpublished manuscript. 2001.

Morrison, Henry Clay. Some Chapters of My Life Story. Louisville, KY: Pentecostal Publishing Company, 1941.

Thacker, Joseph A. Asbury College: Vision and Miracle. Napanee, IN: Evangelical Press, 1990.

Wesche, Percival A. Henry Clay Morrison: Crusader Saint. Wilmore, KY: Asbury Theological Seminary, 1963.