Goodies | Office of Public Relations | Jacksonville State University


From modest beginnings, Jacksonville State University has evolved into the educational center of Northeast Alabama. The Alabama Legislature in the 1882-83 session created a state normal school when Governor Edward O'Neal signed into law a bill creating the school on February 22, 1883. Jacksonville State Normal School acquired the facilities and equipment of Calhoun College, consisting of twelve acres of land and a two-story brick building. The Board of Directors elected James G. Ryals, Jr., as the first president. The school opened with three instructors: W.J. Borden, Mathematics; Eliza A. Bowen, English; and Ida J. Woodward, primary department. As stipulated in the establishing act, the Normal School conducted a preparatory school for children of the town and surrounding areas. At the end of the first year, on August 15, 1884, William Mark Haymes, President of the Board of Directors, reported that funds totaling $4,751.25 had been received, including $2,500 from the state, that 25 students were enrolled in the normal school, and that 222 were in the preparatory school.
The Normal School remained in operation until 1930 when it became Jacksonville State Teachers College, reflecting an increasing higher education role for the institution. Five years later, the college earned regional accreditation from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. In 1957, the name changed again, to Jacksonville State College, when the first graduate program-- the master's degree in elementary education-- was created. On August 2, 1966, the Legislature authorized the State Board of Education to elevate the college to university status. On August 17, 1967, the Legislature established an independent Board of Trustees for the University and divested jurisdiction from the State Board of Education. Jacksonville State University has been served by eleven presidents: James G. Ryals, Jr. (1883-1885); J. Harris Chappell (1885-1886); Carlton Bartlett Gibson (1886-1892);J.B. Jarrett (1892-1893); Jacob Forney IV (1893-1899); Clarence William Daugette (1899-1942);
Houston Cole (1942-1971); Ernest Stone (1971-1981); Theron E. Montgomery (1981-1986); Harold J. McGee (1986-1999); and William A. Meehan (1999-present). Jacksonville State University has developed into a modern regional university serving Northeast Alabama on a 459-acre campus with 58 buildings. Jacksonville State University celebrated 125 years of service to the State of Alabama on February 22, 2008.