This is a postcard showing Fairmont College in Wichita, Kansas. Fairmount College was initially an all womens college, with support and motivation from the Plymouth Congregational Church. Builders sited Fairmount Hall--the main campus building--on an elevation in northeast Wichita; however, the building stood empty for several years after the Wichita growth boom collapsed in 1888. The college for women never opened its doors. A corporation bought the property and named the school Fairmount Institute. It opened in September 1892 to men and women, with an emphasis on training its students in preaching or teaching. Sixteen students enrolled the first semester and 40 students in the spring semester. Although the student population increased, Fairmount Institute closed because of financial difficulties.
Fairmount College (for men and women) opened on the same site in 1895, with funding by the Congregational Education Society. In 1926, CES trustees gave it as a gift to the city of Wichita. This act gave rise to the municipal University of Wichita, funded through taxes paid by citizens. In 1964, the University of Wichita became Wichita State University -- an institution governed by the Kansas Board of Regents. This building burned to the ground in 1929.
![]()
