Women at MSU
151 Groundbreaking Years

In 1870, thirteen years after the first classes, the first women students were admitted to the State Agricultural College. The first ten women students studied agriculture and took classes in chemistry, botany, horticulture, floriculture, trigonometry, surveying, entomology, bookkeeping and more alongside the men.

With the creation of the ‘Women’s Program’ in 1896, more women enrolled at the college. In this program, women learned domestic sciences and arts in what would later be renamed Home Economics. It was one of only 15 in the nation at the time of its inception. To accommodate the new students, the men’s dormitory, Abbot Hall, was renovated, but soon the influx of women outgrew Abbot, and Morrill Hall was built in 1900. Referred to as the Women’s Building, Morrill Hall had space for 120 women residents and included a woodshop, laboratories for cooking and sewing classes, and a gymnasium.

The women of MSU broke through many barriers over the years. In 1879 Eva D. Corryell became the first woman to graduate from M.A.C. Mary Jane Cliff Merrill became the first woman to earn a graduate degree in 1886. In 1907 Myrtle Craig Mowbray was the first Black woman to graduate from the College. Ethel V. Lyon was the first woman permitted to enroll in Engineering and graduated in 1933, and in 1930 Julia Loomis Matthews was the first woman to earn a Ph.D.

From 10 women in 1870, to 51.3% percent of the 38,491 undergraduates enrolled in Fall 2020, women have staked their place at Michigan State University, persevering and changing campus for the better.

Click on any image to enlarge.

"The Lady Graduates of the Michigan Agricultural College, August 15th 1888"

This photo features graduates (Front from Left)Jessie Beal, Mary L. Harrison, Ella Wood, Jennie Towar, Alice Weed, (Back from Left) Alice Johnson, Carrie French, Eva Coryell, and Mary Merrill standing in front of The Rock for a reunion photo.

From University Archives (A009272)

Educational use only, no other permissions given. Copyright to this resource is held by Michigan State University and is provided here for educational purposes only. It may not be reproduced or distributed in any format without written permission of the University Archives & Historical Collections, Michigan State University.