Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, or RPI, is a large university in Troy, New York, near Albany, founded in 1824 by Stephen Van Rensselaer. It is the oldest civilian technological university in the English-speaking world.

Founding of the Institute

Stephen Van Rensselaer established the Rensselaer School November 5, 1824 with a letter to Rev. Dr. Samuel Blatchford, in which he asks him to serve as the first president. Within the letter he set down several orders of business. He appointed Amos Eaton as the school's first senior professor. He also appointed the first board of trustees. On December 29th of that year, the president and the board met and established the methods of instruction, which were rather different from methods employed at other colleges at the time. Students performed experiments and explained their rationale and gave their own lectures rather than listening to lectures and watching demonstrations. The school opened on Monday, January 3, 1825 at the Old Bank Place, a building at the north end of Troy. The opening was announced by a notice, signed by the president, printed in the Troy Sentinel of December 28. The school attracted students from the State of New York, Massachusetts, Vermont, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. The fact that the school attracted students from afar is a tribute to the reputation of Eaton. Fourteen months of successful trial led to the incorporation of the school on March 21, 1826 by the State of New York.

Related Topics:
Stephen Van Rensselaer - November 5 - 1824 - Rev. Dr. Samuel Blatchford - Amos Eaton - Monday - January 3 - 1825 - December 28 - March 21 - 1826

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Enrollment was small before the twentieth century and has grown steadily ever since then. Enrollment figures are as follows:

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1825 - 10 students;

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1850 - 53 students;

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1900 - 225 students;

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1925 - 1,240 students;

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1945 - 1,604 students;

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1950 - 3,987 students (Note the jump in just five years. In the '50's, there was an explosion of dormitory construction, the so-called "freshmen dorms".)

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1965 - 5,232 students http://railroad.union.rpi.edu/images/rpi/RPI-history.asp

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