University of Florida

The University of Florida, is a public university located in Gainesville, Florida. It is the fourth-largest university in the United States, with over 48,000 students; it also has the eighth-largest budget (nearly $1.9 billion per year) and is considered one of the top public universities in the United States. UF is also one of the Public Ivies, the only one in the Deep South.

History

The June 5, 1905 Buckman Act created the current University of Florida by removing funding for existing educational institutions, including the University of Florida at Lake City, the St. Petersburg Normal and Industrial School at St. Petersburg and the South Florida Military College at Bartow, and consoldating them under state control. On July 6, the state legislature selected Gainesville for a new university campus. Andrew Sledd from the University of Florida at Lake City became the first president, while architect William A. Edwards designed the first campus buildings in the collegiate gothic style. Classes began on September 26, 1906. The alligator was chosen as the school mascot in 1911.

Related Topics:
June 5 - 1905 - Lake City - St. Petersburg - Bartow - July 6 - Collegiate gothic - September 26 - 1906 - Alligator - 1911

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1905 was considered the university's official founding date until 1935, when the date was retroactively changed to 1853 by state officials at the instigation of UF's third president John J. Tigert. 1853 was the founding date of the East Florida Seminary in Ocala, an unrelated institution which closed during the Civil War and whose name was used by other schools, including one in Gainesville which was abolished by the Buckman Act in 1905. Some historians believe the motivation was to make UF officially older than Florida A&M, a black college founded in 1887. http://tampatrib.com/opinion/MGBJV5NM8BE.html

Related Topics:
1935 - 1853 - Ocala - Civil War - Florida A&M - 1887

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The Buckman Act established the University of Florida as the only public school in Florida for white males. In 1947, UF began allowing women to enroll. Admission of African-American students began in 1958.

Related Topics:
1947 - 1958

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Shands Hospital at UF first opened in 1958 along with the medical school. Rapid campus expansion began in the 1950s and continues to the present. In 1985, UF's status as a major research institution was confirmed by its admission to the prestigious Association of American Universities. Current efforts at UF continue to focus on expanding the university's role in research in all fields.

Related Topics:
Shands Hospital - 1958 - 1950s - 1985 - Association of American Universities

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Historic sites

The University of Florida Campus Historic District was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1989. The district includes 19 buildings, eleven of which had been added to the register previously. Two buildings outside the historic district, the old WRUF radio station (now the university police station) and the old P. K. Yonge Laboratory School (now Norman Hall), are also listed on the register.

Related Topics:
National Register of Historic Places - 1989 - WRUF

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Additionally, a former East Florida Seminary residence building, Epworth Hall, is listed on the register. Epworth Hall is now part of the First United Methodist Church of Gainesville.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~