Columbia College — 1851 to 2013 |John Augustus Williams, first
president of Christian Female College |Class of 1857| |1889
Senior class with President William Oldham |Missouri Hall,
1920s| |Alumna Deborah Bryant, Miss America 1966 |Launer
Auditorium, 2000| On January 18, 1851, Christian Female College
received its charter from the Missouri Legislature, making it
the first women's college west of the Mississippi River to be
chartered by a state legislature. The city of Columbia strongly
supported female education partly because the University of
Missouri did not yet admit women. The college has been
affiliated by covenant with the Christian Church (Disciples of
Christ) since its inception, yet it has always been a
nonsectarian school welcoming students of all religious
affiliations. Back in 1851, a typical day for the students
started at 6 a.m. The ladies took a morning walk then gathered
for chapel. They attended classes until late afternoon then
wrote a daily composition. After they studied and did chores, t