DePauw University was first named Indiana Asbury University. Within two decades after the founding of Greencastle, the Indiana Conference of Methodist Episcopal Church decided to establish an institution of higher learning in Indiana. In competition with Indianapolis, Lafayette, Madison, Rockville, and Putnamville, Greencastle won the right to become the home of the new university. Greencastle citizens pledged $25,000 to help establish the school, and on January 10, 1837, the Indiana General Assembly granted a charter to establish Indiana Asbury University in Greencastle. The name honored Francis Asbury, the first American bishop of the Methodist Church, and indicated the institution’s Methodist character. The first instructor hired was Cyrus Nutt, named professor of language and director of the Preparatory School. In 1839 Matthew Simpson became the first president. By 1840 the first class of three students graduated, and in the same year the first university building, known as the Edifice, was completed after construction that had begun in 1837. In 1884, after financial reverses, the university was rescued by gifts from businessman and philanthropist Washington C. DePauw of Madison, Indiana. In appreciation, the trustees renamed it DePauw University, which contains within it the Asbury College of Liberal Arts. East College is the oldest building on campus. Its cornerstone was laid on October 30, 1870. With initial contributions of $30,000 from Greencastle citizens, the building was partially occupied by 1875 and dedicated at commencement in 1877. East College was renovated and rededicated in 1981, and its rose-red brick architecture reflects the university’s pride in its educational heritage.