King University Live Cam

History

The origins of King University in Bristol trace back to post-Civil War aspirations for higher education in the Appalachian region. Founded in 1867 under the auspices of the Holston Conference, the institution began as a small college intended to serve the sons and daughters of local families seeking academic and spiritual formation. Early records describe modest classrooms in wood-frame buildings, often heated by wood stoves and lit by oil lamps. Despite limited resources, the founders emphasized a curriculum blending classical studies—Latin, Greek, literature—with emerging practical subjects such as basic sciences and teacher training. In these formative decades, the college cultivated a reputation for resilience: fundraising travels through mountain communities, faculty lodging in local homes, and students sometimes assisting with maintenance and farm work to offset tuition costs.