Concordia University Chicago

Lutheran teacher training in the United States began in Perry County, Missouri; Fort Wayne, Indiana; and Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 1839, 1846, and 1855 respectively.[7]^:35 In 1857, the responsibility for the operation of the teachers seminary in Milwaukee was given to the LCMS. Subsequently, the Milwaukee teachers seminary moved and merged operations with Fort Wayne's[7]^:35 uniting it with the theological seminary that had been founded there by followers of Johann Konrad Wilhelm Löhe.

In October 1863, the LCMS in convention voted unanimously to move the teachers seminary to Addison, Illinois, appointed the first Praeses of the institution, and instructed that a new building be constructed on land donated by a local Lutheran congregation.[7]^:30

Concordia University Chicago marks 1864 as its founding in Addison, Illinois. Originally called Addison Teachers Seminary, the institution is the oldest in the Concordia University System. Construction began on a new facility, with the cornerstone laying service on June 15, 1864. During the construction period, a vacant nearby two-story tavern building was rented to ensure the new teachers seminary could carry out its educational training as scheduled, beginning September 1, 1864.[7]^:43 The original buildings in Addison were demolished, but a monument built from the cornerstone and stone window sills and steps stands on the site of the seminary.[8]

On November 12, 1912, ground was broken for a new campus in River Forest, Illinois. More than 8,000 people attended the cornerstone laying service on December 15, 1912.[7]^:84 On October 12, 1913, the institution moved to its present campus with an estimated 30,000–45,000 people attending the dedication.[7]^:112 Prior to the dedication of the River Forest campus, much discussion took place regarding a new name for the institution. On May 20, 1913, the faculty settled on Concordia Teachers College with the official charter from the Illinois Secretary of State's office being issued on April 28, 1915.[7]^:85

In 1979, the institution expanded its education-centered program to become a full liberal arts institution and changed its name to Concordia College. Eleven years later, in 1990, having experienced tremendous growth in its graduate offerings, the school reorganized and changed its legal name to Concordia University. Since then the institution has branded itself as Concordia University River Forest[1]^:95 (1990–2006) and Concordia University Chicago (2006–present)[1]^:103