Yankton College
Encyclopedia
Yankton College was a small liberal arts
college in Yankton
, South Dakota
, affiliated with the Congregational Christian Churches
(later the United Church of Christ
).
Founded in 1881, it was the first institution of higher learning in the Dakota Territory
. The man primarily responsible for the college's establishment was Joseph Ward
, a local pastor and educator who is one of the two South Dakotans represented in Statuary Hall
.
It is probably best known today as the college which NFL football
player Lyle Alzado
attended. The college's athletic teams were known as the Greyhounds. The football stadium (Crane Youngworth Field) is now used as the home field for the Yankton High School football teams.
Yankton College closed in December 1984, and its campus became the site of Federal Prison Camp, Yankton which opened four years later.
The University of South Dakota - Springfield
, a public university in the same state also originally established in 1881, also closed in 1984, and its campus became the site of a state prison.
Liberal arts
The term liberal arts refers to those subjects which in classical antiquity were considered essential for a free citizen to study. Grammar, Rhetoric and Logic were the core liberal arts. In medieval times these subjects were extended to include mathematics, geometry, music and astronomy...
college in Yankton
Yankton, South Dakota
Yankton is a city in, and the county seat of, Yankton County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 14,454 at the 2010 census. Yankton was the original capital of Dakota Territory. It is named for the Yankton tribe of Nakota Native Americans...
, South Dakota
South Dakota
South Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux American Indian tribes. Once a part of Dakota Territory, South Dakota became a state on November 2, 1889. The state has an area of and an estimated population of just over...
, affiliated with the Congregational Christian Churches
Congregational Christian Churches
The Congregational Christian Churches were a Protestant Christian denomination that operated in the U.S. from 1931 through 1957. On the latter date, most of its churches joined the Evangelical and Reformed Church in a merger to become the United Church of Christ. Others created the National...
(later the United Church of Christ
United Church of Christ
The United Church of Christ is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination primarily in the Reformed tradition but also historically influenced by Lutheranism. The Evangelical and Reformed Church and the Congregational Christian Churches united in 1957 to form the UCC...
).
Founded in 1881, it was the first institution of higher learning in the Dakota Territory
Dakota Territory
The Territory of Dakota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1861, until November 2, 1889, when the final extent of the reduced territory was split and admitted to the Union as the states of North and South Dakota.The Dakota Territory consisted of...
. The man primarily responsible for the college's establishment was Joseph Ward
Joseph Ward (1838-1889)
Joseph Ward was born at Perry Center, New York. After attending public schools, he taught and farmed before entering Phillips Academy, in Andover, Massachusetts. He graduated from Brown University and Andover Theological Seminary...
, a local pastor and educator who is one of the two South Dakotans represented in Statuary Hall
National Statuary Hall
National Statuary Hall is a chamber in the United States Capitol devoted to sculptures of prominent Americans. The hall, also known as the Old Hall of the House, is a large, two-story, semicircular room with a second story gallery along the curved perimeter. It is located immediately south of the...
.
It is probably best known today as the college which NFL football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
player Lyle Alzado
Lyle Alzado
Lyle Martin Alzado was a professional American football defensive lineman of the National Football League famous for his intense and intimidating style of play....
attended. The college's athletic teams were known as the Greyhounds. The football stadium (Crane Youngworth Field) is now used as the home field for the Yankton High School football teams.
Yankton College closed in December 1984, and its campus became the site of Federal Prison Camp, Yankton which opened four years later.
The University of South Dakota - Springfield
University of South Dakota - Springfield
The University of South Dakota at Springfield was a state supported university in Springfield, South Dakota that was founded in 1881 and closed in 1984...
, a public university in the same state also originally established in 1881, also closed in 1984, and its campus became the site of a state prison.
Notable alumni
- Lyle AlzadoLyle AlzadoLyle Martin Alzado was a professional American football defensive lineman of the National Football League famous for his intense and intimidating style of play....
, NFL football player - Gabor BorittGabor BorittGabor S. Boritt was the Robert Fluhrer Professor of Civil War Studies and Director of the Civil War Institute at Gettysburg College. Born in World War II Hungary, he participated as a teenager in the 1956 revolution against the Soviet Union. He escaped to the United States, where he received his...
- Les GoodmanLes Goodman-Biography:Goodman was born Leslie Edward Goodman Jr. on September 1, 1950 in Port Jefferson, New York.-Career:Goodman was drafted in the third round of the 1972 NFL Draft by the Atlanta Falcons and later played two seasons with the Green Bay Packers. He played at the collegiate level at Yankton...
- Alvin HansenAlvin HansenAlvin Harvey Hansen , often referred to as "the American Keynes," was a professor of economics at Harvard, a widely read author on current economic issues, and an influential advisor to the government who helped create the Council of Economic Advisors and the Social security system...
- Riley GardnerRiley GardnerDr. Riley W. Gardner , born in Ree Heights, South Dakota, was an American psychologist who published works on individual differences and cognition.-Early life and education:...
- Nancy LenehanNancy LenehanNancy Lenehan is an American actress who has appeared in film and television since the 1980s. Her most recent starring role was on the short-lived sitcom Worst Week. She also co-starred as Sandy Kelly, the matriarch in the sitcom Married to the Kellys...
- Ruben MendozaRuben Mendoza (American football)Ruben Mendoza is a strength and conditioning coach and a former guard in the National Football League.-Biography:Mendoza was born Ruben Edward Mendoza on May 10, 1963 in Crystal City, Texas. He is married with five children.-Playing career:...