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Bard Hall, ca. 1950.
John and Margaret Bard constructed Bard Hall to St. Stephen’s as part of the original grant of land, buildings, and funds. Built in 1854, it originally served as a chapel on Sundays and as a neighborhood parish school during the week. Over time, it has served many functions: as a library, often as a classroom, and, for many years, as the College’s primary music hall, with excellent acoustics and a seating capacity of about 100.
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Classroom scene, ca. 1895.
Five students of St. Stephen’s College wearing academic gowns review mathematical equations written on a chalkboard in an Aspinwall classroom. In Reamer Kline’s history of the College, this photograph is captioned as follows: "One of the principles of physics studied in St. Stephen's science classes was the Oscillation of the Pendulum--sometimes mistakenly termed Osculation of the Pendulum by students who were said to be more interested in Osculation than Oscillation."
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Hoffman Library, ca. 1895.
Built at a cost of $73,000, the Hoffman Library took two years to build, and was of “fire-proof” construction. When the cornerstone was laid, it was stocked with items that reflected the purpose of College, and the hopes of its supporters. Among the many contents of the cornerstone can be found essays by the Reverends Hopson (“Fasting Communion”), Fairbairn (“Lectures on Morality), and Hoffman (“Notes on Angels”).
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The St. Stephen’s rugby football team, 1895.
Pictured here are members of The St. Stephen’s rugby football team. The rugby ball held by the member in the center bottom row reads '95.
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John Bard, ca. 1890.
Shown here at age 74, John Bard was a member of a distinguished family of doctors and educators. The eleventh of fourteen children, he was the product of an influential colonial and post-colonial family of physicians and educators. His grandfather and great-grandfather, Drs. Samuel and John Bard respectively, were preeminent physicians who practiced both in New York City and from their family estate at Hyde Park, NY. His father, William Bard was a lawyer who founded and administered the “Life and Trust Company,” the first life insurance company in NYS. John was a deeply religious man, determined to use his position in life for the betterment of the less fortunate. With his marriage to wealthy and like-minded Margaret Taylor Johnston, they purchased the estate they renamed Annandale and committed themselves to educational projects in the immediate and surrounding communities. Together with Margaret, a devout woman and a committed philanthropist, John Bard worked tirelessly to create local schools and churches for their community, both at their estate in Annandale, and in the nearby village of Tivoli (then Myersville). In the 1850’s, they built Bard Hall at Annandale which was used as a chapel and a parish school for local children. They subsequently built the Church of the Holy Innocents in 1857, and rebuilt this a year later when the original was destroyed by fire. They also worked with James Starr Clark of Tivoli to build Trinity Church and School, which included a parish school in the basement , and then Trinity Academy, a school for young boys. In 1860, along with other like-minded men, they founded St. Stephen’s College, a training school for young men who intended to pursue careers as Episcopal Ministers. St. Stephen’s was to become the crowning achievement of the Bards’ philanthropies. With the death of their only son Willie in 1868, the Bards, along with their three daughters removed to Europe, partially to escape the weight of their grief. Margaret died in 1875, but John Bard maintained an interest in the institutions he had helped found until his death in 1899. He is buried in the Bard cemetery. In 1934, the trustees of St. Stephen’s College renamed the college Bard in honor of its founders who had transformed the cultural climate of the area.
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Rev. Charles F. Hoffman, ca. 1890.
A trustee of the College for sixteen years, Rev. Hoffman provided sustaining support to St. Stephen’s in the late nineteenth century. His generosity built two dormitories (North and South Hoffman in 1891), as well as the Hoffman Library (1893); he is furthermore credited with “almost single handedly saving the College from extinction,” by his habit of sending checks to Warden Fairbairn during moments of extreme financial crisis.
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The Sunday school class of the Chapel of the Holy Innocents, 1890.
Warden Robert Brinckerhoff Fairbairn is visible on the far left.
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The St. Stephen’s Class of 1889.
Included here is Matthew McDuffie, one of four African American students first admitted in 1884. Rev. McDuffie later became the first resident priest of St. James Episcopal Church in Tampa, Florida.