Illinois's first college (1827–1957), a pioneering Baptist liberal arts institution that became part of Southern Illinois University.
Shurtleff College was founded in 1827 by Reverend John Mason Peck as Rock Spring Seminary in St. Clair County, Illinois, making it the first college in Illinois and one of the first between the Alleghenies and the Mississippi River. It relocated to Alton in 1832 and was renamed Shurtleff College in 1836 to honor Benjamin Shurtleff of Boston, who donated $10,000 to the institution. In keeping with Baptist principles of equality, the college accepted women and students of all races, a progressive stance for its era.
The college fostered intellectual distinction, most notably as the birthplace of Sigma Zeta, a national science and mathematics honor society founded locally to recognize student achievement in fields often overlooked by larger honor societies. In 1910, Andrew Carnegie donated $15,000 for library construction, underscoring the institution's academic reputation. By 1950, the college reached peak enrollment of 700 students and graduated 99 students that year.
Shurtleff College ceased independent operation on June 30, 1957, when it was absorbed into the Southern Illinois University system. The last 28 students graduated in 1958. As an SIU campus, enrollment initially jumped to 1,200 and doubled within two years. In 1972, SIU repurposed the Alton campus as a branch of dental medicine, which continues to operate with approximately 200 students.
The college produced distinguished graduates including Robert Pershing Wadlow (the tallest person in recorded history), Mannie Jackson (chairman and co-owner of the Harlem Globetrotters), U.S. Senator John M. Palmer, and numerous state legislators and judges. The college's mascot was the Pioneers, and it was a member of the Illinois Intercollegiate Athletic Conference from 1910 to 1937.