368 STATE BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



Juno 12, 1S55 — The Executive Committee of the State Agrictiltural Society 

 met ill Detroit Jane li, 1855. Those pi-eseiit were A. Y. Moore, President; 

 J. C. Holmes, Secretary; Messrs. S. M. Bartlett, Payne K. L3ach, James 

 Bagley, Justus Gage, and John Starkweather. Hon. J. 0. Holmes, tlie Sec- 

 retary, delivered an address regarding their duties, etc., including, in full, a 

 paper of Prof. Winchell of the University, advocating the union of the school 

 with the University; including, also, large parts of President Hitchcock's 

 report to the Massachusetts Legislature on European schools of agriculture. 

 Mich. Agr. 1854, pages 337 to 404. 



June 16 — On June 16, 1855, this committee reported the present site of the 

 school (Mich. Agr. 1854, p. 404), and their selection was approved by the 

 State Board of Education. 



Mr. Holmes was appointed to submit a plan for buildings. January 2, 1856, 

 he presented a plan for a west wing of a college building. It is the present 

 college hall. A main hall and an east wing were to complete the group, form- 

 ing a court. Prof. Fisk was consulted regarding the arrangements of the 

 chemical laboratory. The chapel was then where it is now, except that the 

 desk was on the north side, and was simply the lecture table of the class room 

 in chemistry ; the chemical laboratory occupied the north half of the first 

 floor. The library occupied the northeast and the museum the northwest 

 corner rooms of the upper floor. Mr. Holmes reported the plans also for the 

 dining hall and dormitory, a building since consumed by fire. 



The report was adopted. Mr. S. M. Bartlett, of Monroe, was appointed 

 superintendent of the buildings. 



January 21, 1857, the Board of Education made a communication to the 

 Legislature in which they announced that the west wing and the boarding hall 

 were nearly completed, and that they had expended about $10,500 for the 

 farm and $34,774.19 for buildings and improvements^ A brick barn had been 

 erected. The building is now used as a carpenter's shop. 



ORGANIC LAW OF 1855. 



This law continued in force until March ]5, 1861. Besides providing for 

 the selection of a site, the act proceeded to place the college to be established 

 under the direction and control of the State Board of Education, an elective 

 board of three members, having charge of the State Normal School and hav- 

 ing the Superintendent of Public Instruction for its secretary ex officio. The 

 course of instruction was to include "an English and scientific course, natural 

 philosophy, chemistry, botany, animal and vegetable physiology, geology, 

 mineralogy, meteorology, entomology, veterinary art, mensuration, leveling, and 

 political economy, with book-keeping and the mechanic arts which are directly 

 connected with agriculture, and such other studies as the Board of Education 

 may from time to time see fit to prescribe, having reference to the objects 

 specified in the previous section." 



There were to be two terms of study a year, the first term from the first 

 "Wednesday of April to the last Wednesday in October; the second term from 

 the first Wednesday in December to the last Wednesday in February. Students 

 were to labor daily, and during the first term of each year, not less than three, 

 nor more than four hours a day, and none were to be "exempt from such 

 labor except in case of sickness or other infirmity." 



The secretary was to keep a full record of improvements and experiments, 

 and of the crops of each field. Tuition was to be free to citizens of the State. 



