John McLaren McBryde was the fifth president of Virginia Tech, serving from July 1, 1891 to September 1, 1907. McBryde was born in Abbeville, South Carolina. He entered South Carolina College in 1858 at age 17 before going on to the University of Virginia. In 1861, he returned to Abbeville where he joined the Confederate Army. McBryde was present at the opening bombardment of Fort Sumter, South Carolina and fought in a Virginia cavalry unit. He later served as division chief of the Confederate War Tax Office in Richmond Virginia.
John McLaren McBryde
Virginia Tech (VT), officially the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (VPI), is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia. It was founded as the Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College in 1872.
Virginia Tech's Burruss Hall
VT's 6th president, Paul Brandon Barringer
Virginia Polytechnic Institute logo in the 1899 yearbook
A Jaguar Mark VII (left) and Chevrolet Deluxe cars parked in front of Patton Hall, ca 1952