The founding of an all Black female seminary: Spelman, 1881-1927

Abstract

The seminary years of Spelman College beginning April 1881 to August 1927 are covered in this dissertation. The objective was to understand the growth and development of this all black female institution developed by Sophia B. Packard and Harriet E. Giles, two white women northern missionaries. Educated in a seminary themselves Packard and Giles relied heavily on their religious education to build one of the most prestigious historically black institutions in the world. The first students of the school were ex-slave women who gained an elementary education; however, as the school grew the students received a challenging collegiate education. The first black women at the school first called the Atlanta Baptist Female Seminary were Christianized and developed into moral Christian women strengthened by New England views and values. This research sought to understand the motives of the founders of Spelman College.