This was a session at [Seed 2011](/Seed_2011).
### Participants
- [Gus](/Gus) (convener)
- [Ben](/Ben) (note-taker)
- [Lyric](/Lyric)
- [Brandon](/Brandon)
- [Shelley](/Shelley)
- [Sequoia](/Sequoia)
- [Molly](/Molly)
- [Mathew](/Mathew)
### Notes
- http://liberaluniversity.org
- First non-religiously-affiliated university in Oregon
- Known as "the atheist college"
- Lasted from 1892-1902 (formally founded in 1897)
- Occupied the only "Liberal Hall" in Oregon that wasn't out in the country
- Gus is assembling archival material on the website, as well as new stuff
- Historical context
- Silver Falls Timber Company was Silverton's big industry until they chopped all the trees down
- [Quicktime VR](http://liberaluniversity.org/luosftcpan.php) of the timber operation from a panoramic photo taken using a camera similar to the ones on the Viking landers
- Germ theory was just discovered
- "Free Love" movement at the time, offshoot of Free Thought, was opposed to marriage because it constituted enslavement of women
- Silverton Oak was chopped down around that time by what Homer Davenport called "the new element, men with higher collars and smaller hats"
- First air mail to fly out of Silverton was flown by a female pilot
- People involved in LUO
- James K. Buff
- Protested fashion by wearing outrageous costumes
- Tended to walk long distances
- Homer C. Davenport
- Was considered a lazy kid in Silverton
- Hired by Hearst in San Francisco, became highest-paid political cartoonist of the era in New York
- Gus did an annotated edition of the book of his cartoons 5 years ago
- Father Timothy was a prominent Republican who prevented Oregon from becoming a slave state and decried mistreatment of Native Americans
- Pearl W. Geer, co-founder
- Related to first native-born governor of Oregon
- Later went into vaudeville and did sound effects
- Family now runs a CSA called Geercrest Farm
- Prof. J.E. Hosmer
- Zealous temperance advocate
- Quit LUO because they didn't fit his model of Free Thought, claiming he would move to California, then bought the local newspaper instead and used it for anti-LUO campaign
- Also attacked Catholic Church, which sued him for libel and won
- Jake McClaine
- Banker who was a major community benefactor
- Rode at the head of funeral procession
- Funded the trombone band
- Supposedly the only Democrat in Silverton at the time
- MacGert Cooley
- Violin and cornet instructor at LUO
- Also in the Silverton Marine Band
- Kicked in the head by a horse as a child
- [Courses](http://liberaluniversity.org/luo02.php)
- Grange has been wanting to put together courses on sustainability, permaculture, etc
- 4 areas:
- Physical sciences and math
- Biologics, including agriculture
- Social sciences
- Environment, art, and health
- Will have some "Extraterrestrial Agriculture" courses
- Uses open-source Learning Management System called [Moodle](http://moodle.org)