About Thiel > Thiel History



(The following are excerpts from Dr. Roy H. Johnson's "The History of Thiel College 1866-1974".)

Thiel College, located in Greenville, Pennsylvania, was founded by German Lutheran pioneers who came to the western part of the state in the early decades of the 19th century. These hearty people had a common heritage of language, culture and religion. The influence of the church, particularly the newly formed "Pittsburgh Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church," had a profound effect on the early academies which flourished briefly and led to the founding of Thiel College.

The start in 1866 of Thiel Hall, soon to become Thiel College, followed a meeting between the Rev. Dr. William A. Passavant and A. Louis Thiel. Passavant was educated at Jefferson College, a Presbyterian institution in Canonsburg, and at Gettysburg Seminary, and proved to be God's man at the right time and right place. His zest for truth, beauty and mercy led to the establishment of numerous churches, educational institutions and hospitals in the midwest.

Oil Money Leads Thiel to Monaca...