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Columbia University in the City of New York, this institution predates the United States. Columbia is located in the Morningside Heights area of New York City and is a member of the Ivy League.
Columbia University was founded in 1754 as King's College under royal charter of King George II of Great Britain. It is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York and the fifth oldest in the United States. It remains one of the world's most prestigious centers of higher education.
In July 1754, Samuel Johnson (1696-1772; not to be confused with Dr. Johnson, the British lexicographer, 1709-1784) held the first classes in a new school house adjoining Trinity Church, located on what is now lower Broadway in Manhattan. There were eight students in the class. In 1767 King's College established the first American medical school to grant the MD degree.
The American Revolutionary War brought the growth of the College to a halt, forcing a suspension of instruction in 1776 that lasted for eight years. Among the earliest students and trustees of King's College were John Jay, the first Chief Justice of the United States; Alexander Hamilton, the first Secretary of the Treasury; Gouverneur Morris, the author of the final draft of the United States Constitution; and Robert R. Livingston, a member of the five-man committee that drafted the Declaration of Independence.
In 1784 the college reopened as Columbia College, reflecting the patriotic fervor which had inspired the nation's quest for independence.
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