R-MC opened its doors for instruction in the Fall of 1832 in Boydton, Virginia. Most of our early students did not complete the classical curriculum required to get the A.B. degree; the degree required proficiency in Latin and Greek, and Greek especially tripped them up! The first student to graduate was John Chapman Blackwell, who received his A.B. in 1835. Blackwell was the only student in his graduating class, having completed a year at Washington College (now Washington & Lee University) before transferring to the new Randolph-Macon College as a sophomore. We are fortunate in owning the very first diploma issued by the college, shown here:
John C. Blackwell was awarded an A.M. by the College in 1840 and an honorary doctorate in 1861. Like many of our early graduates, he was a Methodist minister and an educator, teaching at the Preparatory Department of R-MC, at Greensborough (N.C.) Female College, at Buckingham Female Collegiate Institute, at Petersburg Female College, and at Randolph-Macon College.