Oxford Female Institute
About this property
Oxford College for Women was a women's college in Oxford, Ohio, United States. It was founded in 1867 through the federation of the Oxford Female Institute and Oxford Female College. It was also known as simply "Oxford College" from 1890 to 1906. After facing financial distress, Miami University absorbed the school in 1928. The former institute has been leased to the Oxford Community Arts Center since 2001. Oxford Female Institute was founded in 1830 by Bethania Crocker and affiliated with the Presbyterian Church. It was chartered in 1849 and its building, on College Avenue, was completed in 1850. Caroline Harrison, the first lady of the United States from 1889 to 1892, was a graduate of Oxford Female Institute. Her father, John Witherspoon Scott, had been the first president of both the institute and of Oxford Female College. Oxford Female College was chartered in 1852 and dedicated on September 3, 1856. Cincinnati judge Ebenezer Lane donated 44 acres of land on the northeast edge of Oxford as well as a substantial amount of money. The building, which would later be known as Fisher Hall, was designed by James Keys Wilson, who was a charter member of the Cincinnati Chapter of the American Institute of Architects. Eric Johannesen, writer of Ohio College Architecture Before 1870, called the building "one of the finest examples of institutional architecture from this period in the Midwest". Fisher Hall was built in a Georgian tradition. Located on Withrow Street, the three-story building formed the letter T and the head of the T, which is the east–west section, was designed to have a major porch with an entry at each end. The center had a projecting section that enclosed a third story ballroom. There was a full basement that contained a kitchen. It was initially built as an independent college building and then Oxford Female College occupied a remote location northeast of the developing town of Oxford. The building's brick shell varied from 12" to 16", and is a local, pale red and sand molded brick. The floor area of Fisher Hall was variously stated between 46,286 square feet (4,300.1 m2) and 61,384 square feet. In 1867, in an attempt to preserve Oxford Female College, President Robert D. Morris federated it with the Oxford Female Institute. The Oxford Female College building was to serve as a boarding institution. After Morris' death in 1882, the Oxford Female College building on Withrow Street was sold to George F. Cook, founder of the Oxford Retreat Company, for $45,000 and used as a sanitarium by Cook until the mid-1920s. In 1890, the institute adopted the name Oxford College. It was re-chartered as Oxford College for Women in 1906 after it was financially restructured.
Location
Categories
Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).
Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Everything a full report reveals about Oxford Female Institute
This page lists Oxford Female Institute. A full Aubrey report for an address near it pulls together this listing alongside battlefield records, land patents, and every other historical record within a chosen radius:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Questions about this property
When was Oxford Female Institute listed on the National Register?
Oxford Female Institute was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on April 25, 1976.
What type of historic resource is Oxford Female Institute?
Oxford Female Institute is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.
What is the period of significance for Oxford Female Institute?
The period of significance for Oxford Female Institute is recorded as the industrial era.
Can I research the history near Oxford Female Institute?
Yes. Aubrey Research reports search National Register listings, battlefield records, land patents, and other primary historical sources within any radius of a US address. A report for an address near Oxford Female Institute will include this listing and all other historical records in the area.
More in Butler County
Historic places, battles, and census history across Butler County.
Explore ButlerCounty ›Research the history near this site
An Aubrey US report for an address near Oxford Female Institute will include this listing alongside battlefield records and other historical sources within your chosen radius.