Colgate University’s present success and vision for a bright future is rooted in a rich, 200-year history.
Our Origins
In 1817, 13 men met in the frontier settlement of Hamilton, N.Y., to found the Baptist Education Society of the State of New York. They are said to have backed up their experiment in education with 13 dollars and 13 prayers, which is why 13 is considered a lucky number at Colgate.
Our People
Great universities are built by great people. Generations of Colgate graduates and faculty have made the university a leading American liberal arts institution. One example: the institution’s first full-time female student, Mabel Dart, who attended the university (then called Madison) from 1878 to 1882.
Our Campus
Colgate is known as one of the most beautiful campuses in the country. There are 88 buildings, approximately 10 miles of roads and walkways, and an estimated 2,300 trees — most common are sugar maples and northern red oaks — on the 575-acre campus.
Audiobook: Becoming Colgate: A Bicentennial History
In Becoming Colgate, Colgate alumnus James Allen Smith ’70, has drawn upon Colgate’s rich historical records to tell a moving, vivid, and inspiring story of the University’s founding, its development over time, and its bonds with the village of Hamilton, the region of central New York, and the nation.
Narrated by the book's author, James Allen Smith ’70.