Butler University

Irvington was in financial difficulties after the economic Panic of 1873 swept the country. When a small college called Northwest Christian University moved into the neighborhood, hundreds of students, professors, and families followed, helping to revitalize the community. The board of trustees changed the name to Butler College in honor of the founder--Ovid Butler upon moving to the suburb. The school remained in Irvington until 1929. It eventually outgrew the neighborhood. Most of the buildings were torn down by the mid-twentieth century. This is a postcard view of the campus in the early twentieth century.