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Although its origins date to 1826, the University in its present
form is the result of the 1967 federation
of Case Institute of Technology and Western Reserve University.
The two institutions had shared adjacent campuses since the
late nineteenth century, and were involved in cooperative efforts
for many years. Today, Case Western Reserve's enrollment and
resources, distributed among undergraduate, graduate, and professional
programs that encompass the arts
and sciences, dental
medicine, engineering,
law, management,
medicine, nursing,
and social work, achieve
a balance that is distinctive among American universities.
Case Western Reserve University is located in University
Circle, a 550-acre, park-like concentration of approximately
50 cultural, medical, educational, religious, and social service
institutions located at the eastern edge of the city center.
University Circle attracts visitors from throughout the region
and the world to its concerts, theater performances, athletic
events, art shows, public lectures, exhibits, and restaurants.
Housing, shopping, and recreational facilities are all located
in the area.
A BRIEF HISTORY
Western Reserve College was founded in 1826 in Hudson, Ohio,
a town 26 miles southeast of Cleveland. The College took its
name from that of the region, known at the time as the Western
Reserve of Connecticut. From the earliest days, Western
Reserve College placed a special emphasis on learning. A
classical focus, standard for the day, was well in place.
Students were required to know both Latin and Greek before
being admitted. Yet the college embraced innovation as well.
By the 1860's when only a few institutions were embracing the
sciences, Western Reserve began hiring scientists no less stellar
than Edward E. Morley, best known for his collaboration with Case
Professor Albert Michelson in 1887 in an experiment that inspired
Albert Einstein's later work in relativity.
Over time, other institutions were established in neighboring
communities. Despite dwindling enrollment, the school did not
veer from its course. Instead it sought new strategies that
would allow for continued growth and academic excellence. One
such strategy involved the move
to Cleveland, where the college could serve a community
hungering for a university. In 1882, with funding provided
by Amasa
Stone, the institution moved to its present location in
Cleveland and took the new name, Western Reserve University.
In 1877 Leonard Case, Jr.,
a leading citizen of Cleveland, began laying the groundwork
for the Case School of Applied Science by donating valuable
pieces of Cleveland real estate to a trust that would provide
an endowment for a new engineering school. Despite his own
traditional education at Yale, he saw a need for practical
education that would train men in engineering and applied science
in such a way that they could use this knowledge to build on
the resources of the country. Not one to court publicity, he
asked his confidential advisor, Henry Gilbert Abbey to administer
the trust and to keep it secret until after his death.
When this eventuality came to pass in 1880, Mr. Abbey acted
swiftly on his friend's request, assembling members of the
corporation and a board of trustees. Case's dream of a school
of applied science was realized just four short months after
his death, when the school was issued a charter by the state
of Ohio.
The establishment of the Case School of Applied Science coupled
with Western Reserve University's move to Cleveland, led to
the first of many partnerships between the schools. Together,
the two schools purchased the land that would become home to
their separate yet adjacent campuses. In 1886, just one year
after Western Reserve had done so, Case moved to its current
site. Over time the Case School of Applied Science grew to
encompass a broader vision, adopting the name Case Institute
of Technology in 1947 to reflect the institution's growing
stature.
In 1967, after being neighbors for 81 years, the two schools
federated to become Case Western Reserve University.
For more information about the history of the university,
visit the Institute
for the Study of
the University in Society.
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