The Founders of Hood College
Hood College was founded May 12, 1893, the date of the first meeting of the board of directors, who at that time established The Woman's College of Frederick, now known as Hood College.
Meeting at the parsonage of the Reformed Church (now the Evangelical Reformed Church, United Church of Christ) five members of the church established an independent college for women. Their goal was to establish a college that would prepare women for roles both in the home and, if they so chose, the workplace. Their guiding principle was that a liberal arts education provides the best preparation for a productive life.
The five men who comprised the board of directors, which was appointed by the Potomac Synod, are recognized as the founders of what today is Hood College.
- The Reverend Edmund R. Eschbach of Frederick
- William H. Lakin of Jefferson, Maryland
- Adrian C. McCardell of Frederick
- John Roller of Harrisonburg, Virginia
- The Reverend Calvin Slagle of Westminster
One of their first tasks was to call a 28-year-old professor from Pittsburgh, Joseph Henry Apple, to be the founding president.
The College’s first home was downtown in the building known as Winchester Hall at 12 East Church Street. It first opened its doors to students on Sept. 12, 1893, with 83 students and a faculty of eight.
The Founders
The founders of Hood College
back row: John Henry Apple, Adrian C. McCardell
front row: Rev. Edmund R. Eschbach, Rev. Calvin S. Slagel, Gen. John E. Roller, William H. Laken
Rev. Edmund Rishell Eschbach served as the president of the first board of directors of The Woman's College of Frederick, from 1893 until his death in 1910. At the time of the College's founding, Eschbach was minister of the Evangelical Reformed Church of Frederick, where he had served since 1873.
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