Colby College is a private, independent institution of higher learning in Waterville, Maine. The liberal arts school developed from the Maine Literary and Theological Institution, chartered as an all-male college in 1813. At that time, Maine was a part of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The school began to grant degrees after Maine became a state in 1820. In 1821, the school’s name was changed to Waterville College. In 1867, it became Colby University. It is named for Gardner Colby, a Boston merchant whose donations prevented the school from closing. The college adopted its present name in 1899. Colby College first admitted women in 1871.
Facilities at the college include the Colby Museum of Art. The Joan Whitney Payson Collection of French Impressionist and Postimpressionist paintings is on view one semester every two years. It includes works by Claude Monet, Pierre Auguste Renoir, John Singer Sargent, James McNeill Whistler, and Andrew Wyeth. The abolitionist Elijah Lovejoy was a Colby graduate. Colby College’s athletic teams are called the Mules.
The college’s website at https://www.colby.edu/ offers additional information.
