In 1880 Mackay returned to Canada for the first time, and people living in his home county of Oxford contributed US $ 6,000 for him to return to Taiwan and construct a school. The source of the money is why it was named Oxford College.
一八八○年馬偕第一次休假回加拿大時，故鄉牛津郡人士募集了六千多美金讓他回台灣建造一座校舍，這也就是校舍名為 Oxford College（牛津學堂）的原因。