Introduction

House built in 1868 by Robert L. Stanton as his home when he was president of Miami University and which today houses university offices. Photo courtesy of Samuel Saldivar. 

Descended from an old New England family, Robert L. Stanton as a young man went West to study at Lane Theological Seminary in Cincinnati under Lyman Beecher.  More than thirty years later, experienced as a Presbyterian minister, church leader, writer, and academic, the Rev. Robert L. Stanton, D. D. served as president of Miami University from 1866 until 1871.  In 1868, he built a private residence in Oxford designed to welcome students and guests.  His "magnificent dwelling" still stands on the corner of Spring and Oak Streets as an intact vestige of "Old Miami."  Known today as the Stanton-Bonham House, the building functions as university office space.