Col. Oliver J. Bond, SCM

Class of 1886

Hometown: Marion, SC

Distinguished Alumnus Photo

  • Bond was appointed 9th Superintendent of The Citadel in 1908.  In 1921, the title of Superintendent was changed to President.  
  • During Bond's tenure as Superintendent and then President, enrollment at the college doubled.  In 1910, the name of the college was changed to "The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina," and in 1922 the school moved from its original location on Marion Square in downtown Charleston to “The Greater Citadel," a new 300 acre campus located between the Ashley River and Hampton Park on the Northwest side of the city of Charleston.
  • After retiring as President, Bond served as Dean of The Citadel from 1931 until his death in 1933.
  • Bond's class of 1886, was the first to attend and graduate from The Citadel after the college and grounds were returned to the state of SC by the US War Department in 1879.  Beside Bonds, 3 other graduates from the Class of 1886, became Presidents of prestigious college's. 
  • An author as well as an educator, Bond wrote The Story of the Citadel, published in 1936, recounting the college's history from 1822 to 1932.
  • Bond Hall on the campus is named in his honor, and members of the Junior Class of cadets trying out for The Summerall Guards, the college's elite silent drill platoon, are known as “Bond Volunteers."