The university that was burned by Union troops in 1865
In short: In April 1865, just five days before Lee’s surrender, Union forces set fire to the University of Alabama campus. While most buildings were destroyed, four survived—including the President's Mansion and a small 'Little Round House.' Today, that same site stands as a massive research hub with deep scars from its past.
The University of Alabama was established in 1820 on a land grant of 46,000 acres. Its early architecture was heavily influenced by Thomas Jefferson’s plan for the University of Virginia, featuring a prominent 70-foot wide domed Rotunda that served as the campus nucleus. However, its history is marked by intense conflict. During the Civil War, many cadets graduated to serve as officers in the Confederate Army, leading Union troops to burn the campus in 1865. Only four structures remained standing after the fire.
The university's evolution was also defined by social upheaval and rigid discipline. In 1860, it was transformed into a military school to curb student riots and gunfights. It remained a site of deep racial segregation until the 1960s. The most famous instance of resistance occurred in 1963 when Governor George Wallace attempted to block the enrollment of Vivian Malone and James Hood. Despite his 'Stand in the Schoolhouse Door,' federal marshals intervened, leading to Malone becoming the first African American graduate and Hood eventually receiving his doctorate in 1997.
Today, UA is a Carnegie R1 research institution with over 200 degree programs and 30 research institutes. It manages a 1,970-acre campus featuring 297 buildings. While it remains the state's flagship public university, its identity is anchored in these historical layers—from the pro-slavery literary societies of the antebellum period to the modern construction of Alabama's first School of Data Science.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: University of Alabama
- Also: www.ua.edu — Home - The University of Alabama | The University of Alabama
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