Evening star., 1934-04-08
BY COLEMAN NEVIS, S. J.,

I4tSlutIlI VI NitOI btlONil OIl4NttoilS.
~ ONE individuals are supersti-
tious enough to believe in lucky
numbers, and generally we
~ smile at their cedulousness.
Perhaps the same benign ex-
preston may be conceded to institu-
tions which point to certain years as
particularly fortunate. If so, George
town University would choose the
fourth decades of the centuries-the
'30s-as years of special blessing
For. though the university was
established on its present site in 1889,
it was in the '30s of the seventeenth
century that Georgetown was really
born.
In 1884. at ST. Marys City. in Mary
land, the seed was planted which
eventually grew into the university as
we know it today. And tomorrow, as
part of the tercentenary which Mary
land has been celebrating elaborately
during the past weeks. Georgetown
will commemorate Founders day, in
memory of the first founders who 300
years ago planted the seed of higher
learning from which sprouted George
town University.
The progenitors of the school landed
in Maryland in 1884; they were two
priests, Andrew White and John
Altman Gravenor, and a lay brother
Thomas Gervase. who belonged to
society which had been inaugurated at
Montmartre, Paris, in 1884 incident
ally, another fortunate 80" in
Georgetown history. The growth of
the school from these founders has
been traced by many historians.
"A statue of Andrew White, the
pioneer, whose catechism, dictionary
and grammar furnished the primal
weapons of church and school in Eng
lish America" wrote Fairfax Nc
Laughlin, should rise at Georgetown
College. He was the first founder.
The title deeds of the university be-
gan with him. From the hour Of its
inception the school was always under
Jesuit auspices"
Migration Traced.
And then Mclaughlin traced the
beginning of the school at ST. Marys
City; it's transfer to Calverton Manor,
Md. in 1640, under Father Thomas
Copley; its migration to Newtown
Manor, Md. about 1877, under Father
Michael Forster and Brother Thomas
Hothersall; its removal to Bohemia
Manor. Md, about 1745. probably un-
der Father Thomas Poulton, and its
establishment on Georgetown Heights
in 1879 under the auspices of Father
John Carroll.
The year 1884 was not the only
fortunate go" in GeorgetoWn's his
tory 1t was century later. in 1888.
that John Carroll. who established the
university on the banks of the Poto-
mac, was born in Upper Marlboro.
The 1905 were especially rich for
Georgetown. Two more buildings
we're added to the Old South. which
had been erected on Georgetown
Heights in 1887 to house the school,
and the Old North, which had been
erected in 1871. Also, in 1880, the
first formal debating society in the
United States was started at George
town, and, under the name of the
Philodemic Society. it has enjoyed
uninterrupted activities for more than
a hundred years. Then, on March
so, 1888, Georgetown was created by
Pope Gregory XVI as the first ponti-
fical institution in North America.
The 1930s saw the completion OF
the new Medical-Dental Building. near
Observatory Hall, and the erection of
a de luxe dormitory. Copley Hall and
the stately White-Gravenor Building
for recitation and sciences. In the
beautiful woods called the Walks"
the Esme- Isabella Theater was con-
structed from the port-cochere col
umns of the old British embassy,
where Lord and Lady Howard lived
for six years The theater will be
dedicated May 18 with an outdoor
play.
Grounds Expanded.
From the acre and a half which it
secured in 1877 Georgetown Univer-
sity has grown until it now embraces
95 acres on one of the most beautiful
spots in America. 1t was first pro-
posed by the Carroll family to place
the new institution on the very spot
where the United States Capitol now
stands, but in those days that was too
far in the country, and Dr.. John Car
roll felt that a location nearer "the
city" was preferable. How well he was
guided in this choice is frequently
commented upon, and Charles Dick
ems, in American Notes." says:
AT George Town, in the suburbs,
there is a Jesuit College; delightfully."-
situated and, so far as had an op-
portunity of seeing, well managed.
Many persons who are not members
of the Roman Church avail them
selves. I believe, of these institutions
arl of tho nj orporf,1nitiee