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Timeline: 1876-1900
1876
Pace Hall was constructed at a cost of $11,000, most of which was donated by James P. Pace, a trustee of the college.
1877
President Duncan died and was succeeded by the Rev. W. W. Bennett.
1879
Duncan Memorial Church and Chapel (now Old Chapel) opened. The college occupied the first floor and the church sanctuary was on the second floor.
1886
William Waugh Smith became the college's president and served until 1897.
1887
Randolph-Macon became the first southern college to develop biology as a distinct study. Physical education became a regular part of the curriculum and was required of all students. The college opened a gymnasium, the first college building in the South to be used exclusively as a gym.
1889
Pettyjohn Science Hall opened.
1893
Students were housed in cottages � square, two-story, frame buildings with four rooms per floor. Rooms were heated by stoves, and many students sawed their own wood. Students studied by kerosene lamps and got their water from a large pump on campus. There was no indoor plumbing.
1897
John A. Kern became the college's president.
1899
W. G. Starr became college president and served until 1902.
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