First Public Institution of Higher Education in Texas - Texas A&M University - College Station, TX
Posted by: 
WalksfarTX
N 30° 36.940 W 096° 20.455
14R E 754909 N 3390023
The Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas was established by the Texas state legislature on April 17, 1871.
Waymark Code: WMPXEK
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 11/04/2015
Views: 4
The first institutions of higher learning established in Texas were the result of efforts by churches or religious organizations. Baylor University is acknowledged to be the oldest continually operating institution of higher education in Texas, having been founded in 1845, but is it not a "public" school. Therefore the qualification in the title of the waymark.
From My Aggie Nation Website:
The first campus building, “Old Main,” was destroyed by fire in 1912. The interior floors and walls and the roof were all made of wood so only the brick exterior was left.
The next day cadets attempted to take down the brick exterior with rifle fire and a cannon. Their attempts can be seen in documented photographs at Cushing Memorial Library and Archives. Neither methods were successful so they used pulled the walls down with ropes.
Inside the four-story building had been dormitory rooms, classrooms, offices, a library and, more importantly, all the school’s records. The armory was kept on the fourth floor, which exploded when the building burned. The Academic Building was completed in 1914 on the same site Old Main previously stood.
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