Item #31892 KNOX COLLEGE. COMMENCEMENT, AND ANNIVERSARY OF THE ADELPHI, TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY, JUNE 23 & 24, 1846. Knox College.
KNOX COLLEGE. COMMENCEMENT, AND ANNIVERSARY OF THE ADELPHI, TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY, JUNE 23 & 24, 1846.

KNOX COLLEGE. COMMENCEMENT, AND ANNIVERSARY OF THE ADELPHI, TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY, JUNE 23 & 24, 1846.

[Peoria? 1846]. 3, [1 blank] pp. Folded, lightly worn, Very Good.

This is the scarce record of Knox College's first graduation. Byrd suggested a Galesburg imprint for this item. But Tanner writes, "No press is known to have been active in Galesburg in 1846. It is more likely that this item was printed in Peoria by Samuel H. Davis, who printed another item for Knox College at about the same time."
Knox College was chartered in 1837 by the Illinois legislature, which numbered Abraham Lincoln among its members. Knox's website states, "Our founders opposed slavery in all forms—physical, spiritual, intellectual—and believed deeply in the potential of every human being to learn, grow, and contribute to the greater good of the community. This was a radical idea at the time. . . The fifth Lincoln-Douglas debate was held on campus in 1858. Lincoln used the occasion to denounce slavery on moral terms for the first time. This was not a coincidence."
Each graduate delivered an Oration. Themes varied: 'Unprofitableness of Sin,' 'Connection of Morality with Politics,' 'Reason, its Nature and Office,' Western Society, its Position and Destiny', 'The Press,' 'Error.' Of the nine graduates, "Four become ministers of the gospel, while one becomes a professor of mathematics at Knox, one an editor of several Galesburg newspapers, one a doctor, and another, a lawyer and partner of Robert G. Ingersoll." [id].
Byrd 1088 [3- IHi, IGK, IaU]. Tanner, Some Corrections and Emendations. Not in American Imprints or Sabin, or on OCLC as of March 2023. Item #31892

Price: $500.00