McMaster University

McMaster University is a medium-sized research-intensive university located in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, with an enrollment of 16,771 full-time and 3,599 part-time students (as of 2004).

History

Senator William McMaster, the first president of the Canadian Bank of Commerce, founded the university bearing his name in 1887. It was sponsored by the Baptist Convention of Ontario and Quebec as a sectarian undergraduate institution for its clergy and adherents. It began operating three years later, and graduated its first students in 1894.

Related Topics:
William McMaster - Canadian Bank of Commerce - 1887 - Baptist Convention of Ontario and Quebec - 1894

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The university was originally located in Toronto and nearly became federated with the University of Toronto as Trinity College and Victoria College were (Victoria moved from Cobourg in the process).

Related Topics:
Toronto - University of Toronto - Trinity College - Victoria College - Cobourg

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Local boosters in Hamilton offered large donations of money and land to McMaster to relocate rather than federate, and the move was accomplished in 1930. University Hall, one of the original campus buildings, includes a statue of Senator McMaster and his contribution to the university. The Toronto Building, on Bloor Street West, now houses the Royal Conservatory of Music.

Related Topics:
1930 - Bloor Street West - Royal Conservatory of Music

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

During and immediately after the Second World War, McMaster experienced an explosion of growth in scientific research and student enrollment under H.G. Thode. This placed a strain on the finances of what was still a denominational Baptist institution. Consequently, in 1957, the McMaster Divinity College was incorporated to continue the university's religious traditions, while the university itself became a secular public institution.

Related Topics:
Second World War - H.G. Thode - Baptist - McMaster Divinity College

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~