Stanford University - Memorial Court
Entering the Stanford University campus from Palm Drive and the Oval, you make your way through Memorial Arch and Memorial Court toward the Main Quad and Stanford Memorial Church.
Memorial Arch is dedicated to Leland Stanford, Jr. -- Jane and Leland Stanford's adolescent son who died of typhoid. Stanford University was built in their son's memory.
Already in possession of the property known as Palo Alto Farm -- where Leland Stanford raised trotters -- the Stanfords built the private, co-ed facility which opened in 1891. ("The Farm" is a Stanford nickname derived from the property's origins.)
Leland Stanford was one of San Francisco's Big Four -- the group of Central Pacific Railroad magnates that also included Mark Hopkins, Charles Crocker and Collis Huntington. As Governor of California, Stanford helped facilitate the construction of the transcontinental railroad.
Guide to Stanford for Visitors
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Stanford University Stats
- Stanford University opened as a co-ed institution in 1891
- US News ranked Stanford #4 in its Best American Colleges list for 2008 (behind Princeton, Harvard and Yale)
- Stanford Enrollment: Approx. 6600 undergraduates and 7800 graduate students
- Stanford Athletic teams are known as the Stanford Cardinal (not Cardinals)
- Stanford has a historic football rivalry with UC Berkeley, going back to its founding days. The competition culminates each year at the Big Game between the two teams
- Stanford University has 17 living Nobel laureates
More information about Stanford University:
Stanford Campus Map | Stanford University Website | Stanford Admissions | Stanford Cardinal Athletics | Visiting Stanford | City of Palo Alto Website