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Robert Laban Abernethy. Image courtesy of NC Office of Archives & History. Rutherford College
Robert Laban Abernethy. Image courtesy of NC Office of Archives & History.
, a forerunner of Brevard College, was established in 1853 by the Reverend Robert Laban Abernethy as a private school known as Owl Hollow Schoolhouse in Burke County. It was built on 600 acres of forestland given by John Rutherford. In 1858 the school was chartered as Rutherford Seminary; Brantley York served as a professor on its faculty in later years. In 1900 the school came under control of the Methodist Church. It was a coeducational institution, and one-fourth of the students were admitted tuition-free. Reportedly, more than 4,000 students matriculated at Rutherford College throughout its existence. In the early 1930s, Rutherford College and Weaver College merged with Brevard Institute at Brevard to become Brevard College.

References:

George W. Bumgarner and James Elwood Carroll, The Flowering of Methodism in Western North Carolina (1984).

Elmer T. Clark, Methodism in Western North Carolina (1966).

Additional Resources:

Rutherford College, NC Highway Historical Marker N-29: https://www.ncdcr.gov/about/history/division-historical-resources/nc-highway-historical-marker-program/Markers.aspx?ct=ddl&sp=search&k=Markers&sv=N-29%20-%20RUTHERFORD%20COLLEGE

Act to prevent sale of alcohol near Rutherford Seminary: https://digital.ncdcr.gov/Documents/Detail/private-laws-of-the-state-of-north-carolina-passed-by-the-general-assembly-1868-1869/1952675?item=2042257

Weaver College, NC Highway Historical Marker P-74: https://www.ncdcr.gov/about/history/division-historical-resources/nc-highway-historical-marker-program/Markers.aspx?ct=ddl&sp=search&k=Markers&sv=P-74%20-%20WEAVER%20COLLEGE

Laws and resolutions of the State of North Carolina, passed by the General Assembly at its session [1881]: https://digital.ncdcr.gov/Documents/Detail/laws-and-resolutions-of-the-state-of-north-carolina-passed-by-the-general-assembly-at-its-session-1881/3889515?item=3893991

Rutherford College yearbooks: https://lib.digitalnc.org/search?ln=en&p=691:%22Rutherford+College%22%20AND%20655:%22Yearbooks%22&sf=year&so=a

Image Credit:

Robert Laban Abernethy. Image courtesy of NC Office of Archives & History. Available from https://www.ncdcr.gov/about/history/division-historical-resources/nc-highway-historical-marker-program/Markers.aspx?ct=ddl&sp=search&k=Markers&sv=N-29%20-%20RUTHERFORD%20COLLEGE (accessed November 11, 2012).

Citation

Carroll, Grady L. E., Sr. "Rutherford College." NCpedia. Encyclopedia of North Carolina, University of North Carolina Press. Accessed on February 15th, 2025. https://www.ncpedia.org/rutherford-college.