Bryson College, the Associate Reformed Presbyterian College in the West, was founded in Fayetteville, Tennessee, in 1919 and closed in 1929 when it merged with its sister A.R. Presbyterian institution, Erskine College. Its first president was Dr. Hunter Bryson Blakely, followed by his successors, faculty, personnel, alumni, and friends whose connection to the college reflected the lasting benefits it provided to many students. The ten stones bordering the memorial represent the ten school terms during which Bryson College operated, and they came from the site of the arch type stone building that for many years crossed Elk River at Fayetteville. Because of the bridge's unique design and beauty, the Bryson College yearbook was called The Bridge.