Since the college was founded in a sparsely populated area with only a handful of nearby farmhouses, and it was an arduous stagecoach ride from Lansing, the College built four faculty houses in the first year of classes in 1857. One of these original faculty houses, Cowles House, still exists as the President's official residence, though only two walls and part of the foundation remain of the original construction. Ultimately, ten faculty homes were built on campus between 1857 and 1885.