Skip to main content

Brigham Young Academy

 Organization

Dates

  • Existence: 1875 - 1903

Administrative History

Brigham Young Academy (1875-1903) was established by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints under the direction of Brigham Young for the instruction of church members in the area of Provo, Utah.

Brigham Young Academy was the predecessor to Brigham Young University and Brigham Young High School. Brigham Young saw the school as a place where all secular learning should be fused with teachings from the scriptures. Despite steady growth during its early years, the Academy was threatened by a series of financial and physical setbacks. With the help and sacrifice of Abraham O. Smoot, the campus moved in 1891 to new facilities on University Avenue in Provo Utah. The Academy's curriculum strengthened and enrollment grew. In 1903, the name was officially changed to Brigham Young University.

Brigham Young Academy principals included Warren N. Dusenberry (1876), Karl G. Maeser (1876-1892), and Benjamin Cluff (1892-1894). Benjamin Cluff also served as Academy president between 1894 and 1903.

Citation:
The Journal of pedagogy, Feb. 1895: t.p. (Brigham Young Academy)

BYU--national champions, 1985: intro. (Brigham Young University)

History of BYU (within Brigham Young University website), via WWW, 4 November 2010 (Brigham Young Academy established October 16, 1875 in Provo, Utah. Name changed to Brigham Young University in 1903. Sponsored by Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)

Provo City Library website, via WWW, Oct. 2, 2012 (Brigham Young Academy; founded in 1876; essentially a high school until 1896, with the founding of the College Dept.)

YFacts History of BYU, via WWW, viewed May 31, 2013 (Brigham Young Academy (1875-1903), Brigham Young saw the school as a place where all secular learning should be fused with teachings from the scriptures, despite steady growth during its early years, the Academy was threatened by a series of financial and physical setbacks, with the help and sacrifice of Abraham O. Smoot, the campus moved in 1891 to new facilities on University Avenue in Provo Utah, the Academy's curriculum strengthened and enrollment grew, 1903 the name was officially changed to Brigham Young University)

Yfacts BYU Presidents, via WWW, viewed Mar. 19, 2013 (Brigham Young Academy principals included Warren N. Dusenberry (1876), Karl G. Maeser (1876-1892), and Benjamin Cluff (1892-1903))

Brigham Young High School History, via WWW, viewed May 31, 2013 (Brigham Young Academy was the predecessor to Brigham Young University and Brigham Young High School)

Found in 27 Collections and/or Records:

J. Urban Allred diaries

 Item — Folder 1: [Barcode: 31197230328988]
Identifier: MSS SC 2909
Scope and Contents Volume begins with autobiographical sketch concerning Allred's early life in Lehi, Utah. Diaries document his attendance at Brigham Young Academy, September 1892-May 1898; service as a Mormon missionary in Tennessee in the Southern States Mission, June 1898-July 1900; activities as a school teacher in Vernal, Utah, August 1900-May 1901; family life with Amelia May Hammond in Lehi, 1901-1910; and family life with Edna Bingham in Raymond, Alberta, and elsewhere, beginning in 1912. Diaries also...
Dates: 1892-1956

Joseph Jeppa Anderson diaries

 Collection — Multiple Containers
Identifier: MSS 1437
Scope and Contents

Photocopies of handwritten diaries. Anderson writes about his early life in Lehi, Utah; his activities at Brigham Young Academy; his teaching experiences at Mayfield, Brigham City, and Hanksville, Utah and in Arizona; and his bee keeping business in Idaho and California.

Dates: 1878-1950

Joseph W. Booth diaries and poems

 Collection — Multiple Containers
Identifier: MSS 155
Scope and Contents

Handwritten diaries and poems. These journals were kept from 1885 to 1928 when Booth was in Alpine, Utah, at the Brigham Young Academy in Provo, Utah, and in Turkey and Armenia as a missionary and as mission president.

Dates: 1885-1916

Benjamin Cluff diaries

 Collection — Multiple Containers
Identifier: MSS 1667
Scope and Contents

Contains four diaries and their respective transcripts covering the period from 1881-1909 and detailing Cluff's time as a student at Brigham Young Academy and the University of Michigan, as well as his subsequent appointment as President of the Academy. Also describes his activities and experiences as a plantation owner in Tabasco, Mexico.

Dates: 1881-1909

John William Crook diary and account book

 Collection — Box 1: [Barcode: 31197233277836]
Identifier: MSS 157
Abstract

Handwritten diary and account book of the Heber Canal Company written by John Crook from 1886 to 1903.

Dates: 1886-1903

Abel Alexander Dewitt collection

 Collection — Multiple Containers
Identifier: MSS 2281
Scope and Contents Contains two holograph missionary journals (April 16-November 14, 1903 and November 15, 1903-April 21,1904) kept by DeWitt on his mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Oklahoma and nearby states. Also included are two holograph journals (July 29, 1897-November 30, 1900 and 1901-1906) and an autograph book (1900-1901) kept by his wife, Ruth Leila Kempe DeWitt. The collection also contains photocopies and transcriptions of the volumes.Also contains a...
Dates: 1897-1914

Diary excerpt of the South American scientific expedition of the Brigham Young Academy

 File — Folder 1: [Barcode: 31197227331375]
Identifier: UA 368
Scope and Contents

Contains a typescript of journal (86 pages) of the Brigham Young Academy South American Expedition and correspondence concerning the Tolton family genealogy.

Dates: 1900-1902

Charles Love Flake diary

 File — Folder 1: [Barcode: 31197230307966]
Identifier: MSS SC 982
Scope and Contents Photocopies of typescript journal which was transcribed from the holograph original by Albert J. Levine. Flake was born in Beaver, Utah but spent most of his life in Arizona. He attended Brigham Young Academy in Provo, Utah and served as a missionary for the Mormon Church in Mississippi (1883-1885). He supplied lumber to the Woodruff Co-op store and carried mail from Holbrook, Arizona to Ft. Apache.He was murdered in 1892(??). His brother, Oz Flake, gave an account of...
Dates: 1881-1892

Bernella E. Gardner diary

 File — Multiple Containers
Identifier: MSS 973
Scope and Contents

Handwritten diaries in four volumes for the years 1886-1929, 1936-1938, 1944-1949, and 1949-1950. Gardner writes about her daily activities in Pine Valley and in Cedar City, Utah. Also included are notes taken in a theology class at Brigham Young Academy in Provo, Utah.

Dates: 1886-1950

Milton H. Hardy diaries

 File — Folder 1: [Barcode: 31197230318666]
Identifier: MSS SC 1998
Scope and Contents

Two handwritten diaries and pasted in newsclippings. Many diary entries were made in short hand. The newsclippings relate to Hardy's discussions of religion and educational matters and to his attempts to harmonize religion and science. Hardy travelled through Europe in 1875 and was active in Utah educational matters upon his return.

Dates: 1875-1883