We walk the grounds of this campus every day, attend classes in Towers Hall and wear our tan and cardinal colors proudly. But what do we really know about the school we attend?
We are walking the same paths and sitting in the same rooms that thousands of Otterbein students have since 1847, when the university first opened.
Hopefully, these facts will teach you something, amuse you or simply make you proud to say you're an Otterbein Cardinal. Enjoy.
1847
Otterbein University opened. It sat on eight acres and comprised two buildings. Otterbein was the second coeducational school in America. Another Ohio institution, Oberlin College, was the first.
1853
A group of male Otterbein students began the Philomathean Literary Society. A year later, a group of women began the female literary society, the Philalethea Literary Society. To this day, their meeting place, the Philomathean Room, is still on the third floor of Towers Hall.
1861-1864
During the Civil War, 127 men from Otterbein joined the military efforts. Eight of these brave soldiers were killed.
1870
The Main Building caught fire and was rebuilt and christened the Administration Building. Students nicknamed it Towers, and the name stuck.
1890
The Cardinals played The Ohio State Buckeyes, beating them 42-6. Pictured: The 1890 Otterbein football team. (See photo 1).
1891
The Color Committee was established. We can thank them for the tan and cardinal colors we proudly sport today. Pictured: The original color swatches chosen as our school colors. (See photo 2).
1900
Otterbein's Board of Trustees proposed that Otterbein be moved to Dayton. As a result, Westerville residents raised thousands of dollars to pave the roads and install electric lights on the streets, new water and sanitary sewers and a telephone system.
1908-1910
The first fraternities and sorority are introduced at Otterbein. Pictured: A Sigma Alpha Tau pledge paddle from 1950. (See photo 3).
1922
Calvin Coolidge, then the vice president of the U.S., visited Otterbein to rededicate the Civil War monument that stands in front of Towers Hall today. Pictured: Coolidge places a bouquet on the monument. (See photo 4).
1952
Scandal erupted on campus in May when about 150 male students stormed the halls of Saum, Cochran and King. Around 1 a.m., the mischievous students first snuck into Cochran Hall and wreaked havoc on the all-girls dorm. Throughout the early hours of the morning, the men also found their way into Saum and King Halls through fire escapes and open windows. According to "Otterbein College: Affirming Our Past/Shaping Our Future" by Daniel Hurley, this event made a national headline in The New York Times.
1974
The College Senate passed a bill that would allow students to drink in their dorm rooms. The Board of Trustees, however, shot the idea down. Close, but no cigar.
1982
Because of the fire that burned the Main Building (now Towers Hall) in 1870, the Philomathean Room was badly damaged. In 1982, Otterbein restored this historical gem to its original Victorian Gothic style. Towers Hall is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
2009
Otterbein's first female president, Kathy Krendl, was inaugurated. Pictured: Krendl speaks at the Dee Dee Myers Convocation in 2009. (See photo 5). t&c;
