September 24

Agnes Scott College

September 24, 1889 - Atlanta

Its beautiful campus has hosted more than 20 movies and TV shows. It opened in 1889 as the Decatur Female Seminary. As Agnes Scott College, it's become a preeminent institution of women's higher education. 

In 1888, Frank Gaines became pastor of the Decatur Presbyterian Church. With church support, he founded the seminary the next year as a grammar school for young girls. It opened in a rented three–story house with 63 students and four teachers.

George Washington Scott, a church member, served as a trustee. He donated $40,000 to build a permanent home, to be renamed for his mother, Agnes Irvine Scott, who immigrated to America as a teenager.

Agnes Scott College was chartered in 1906. It's still affiliated with the Presbyterian Church, (U.S.A.). It was the first institution of higher learning in Georgia to receive accreditation from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. Its stated mission is to educate women “to think deeply, live honorably, and engage the intellectual and social challenges of their times.” It has touched the lives of generations of women since it opened on September 24, 1889, Today in Georgia History.