Purdue University, located in
West Lafayette, Indiana, United States is the
flagship university of the six-campus
Purdue University system. Purdue was founded on May 6, 1869, as a
land-grant university when the
Indiana General Assembly, taking advantage of the
Morrill Act, accepted a donation of land and money from
Lafayette businessman
John Purdue to establish a college of science, technology, and agriculture in his name. The first classes were held on September 16, 1874, with six instructors and 39 students.