Capital University and the Evangelical Lutheran Theological Seminary
of Columbus, Ohio ... A Brief History ... focusing on the Years 1870-1900 ... the Lilje Era
A SPOTLITE™ Presentation by Vic Berecz.

The Beginnings

The Joint Synod of Ohio and Other States (herein the "Ohio Synod") was a strictly confessional Lutheran body, populated largely by German immigrants, that spread throughout what we now call the upper mid-West. By 1830, their growth was such that they could not rely only on pastors coming from Germany or local candidates simply "reading" theology with active pastors. Therefore the Evangelical Lutheran Theological Seminary was founded in Canton by Prof. Wilhelm Schmidt, and soon moved to Columbus, the rapidly growing state capital.

Following Schmidt's death in 1839, devisiveness reared its face as the seminary (following the Synod's lead) took an increasingly conservative theological path and at the same time insisted that only the German language be used as a medium for instruction. A preparatory school was added in 1847, when Dr. W.H. Lehmann came to the seminary. In 1850, a college program was initiated with the incorporation of Capital University. At the end of that first year, there were 111 students in the preparatory school, nine college freshman, three sophomores, and thirteen seminarians.

In 1853, a new building was dedicated at Goodale Park which included lecture halls, faculty offices, library and dormitory. It served the needs of the institution until 1876. In the early 1870s, land was purchased in suburban Bexley and Lehmann Hall was dedicated in 1876 ... the first building of the present-day campus. From the beginning until 1930 the university (and preparatory school) and the seminary were technically separate institutions, but since they shared facilities and faculty they were generally thought of as one.

During the Lilje Era

Goodale Park Building

Lehmann Hall in 1876
Administration.When Christoph Lilje arrived in Columbus in 1872, the Seminary was still operating out of the Goodale Park building. The year after he received his A.M. degree and went on to Port Clinton, the move to the new campus and Lehmann Hall was completed. Capital now had a fine physical plant, but through the "middle-years" (1880-1912) many financial and other problems persisted. When Otto Lilje came to Capital in 1893, the college was already in decline, though the seminary continued to get good support from the Ohio Synod.

Programs.From all appearances, the course of study both in the college and seminary were typical of 19th century education. Click here to see a detailed course listing for the College in 1879 ... ... and here to see Otto Lilje's 1898 courses and grades from the Seminary ... . H.J. Schuh gradudated in 1872 and later noted: "[a degree] was conferred upon all who had spent four years at college, irrespective of what they had learned or neglected to learn." Capital, of that era, was not among America's better universities.

Student Population.With Lehmann as President (1857-80) Capital came back from the brink after the Civil War. The Ohio Synod continued to support the seminary, and the number of pastoral candidates remained fairly constant. But, the college program was a different story. It was hampered by the lack of teachers, equipment, and labs in an increasingly scientific age ... plus the use of German in most classes. Toward the end of the century, the college was in rapid decline. A snapshot of the student body is found in the 1900 US Census seen here in part. It shows living with President L.H. Schuh in Lehmann Hall, were his family and 92 students ... prep school, college, and seminary combined. Capital University remained very small until World War I.

The University since 1912

Dr. Otto Mees was appointed President of the University in 1912 and served until 1945. It is during his tenure that Capital grew into a well-regarded, full-fledged American university. Mees was a year behind Otto Lilje in both Capital's college and seminary program; he then went on to receive his doctorate in Germany and served a congregation before returning to Capital as its President.

After the First World War, the university grew rapidly to a student body of over 500. The addition of an extensive music program, a fully state-accredited teacher training program, and going "co-ed" (the first female students were accepted in 1920) ... plus the use of English in classes ... all contributed to this growth. In 1930, when the Ohio Synod merged with two smaller German synods to form the American Lutheran Church, the university and seminary were put under a single Board of Regents. In its first century, the Seminary had produced over 1200 pastors most of whom served the Ohio Synod. During World War II, much of the campus became an Army Air Corps training facility, but post-war a rapid expansion began. At its centennial in 1950, Capital University had 1100 students and a faculty of 100.

In 1978 the seminary at Capital University was merged with nearby Hamma Divinity School, and was renamed Trinity Lutheran Seminary. Since the 1986 merger of several large Lutheran bodies into the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), Capital University is one of the 26 ELCA colleges and universities and Trinity Lutheran Seminary one of eight ELCA seminaries serving the educational needs of the denomination across the entire United States.