Crane Theological School

[5] Universalist layman and major Tufts supporter Silvanus Packard founded the school with a bequest in 1869.

In 1891, students saw the building of separate quarters for the school with the construction of Miner and Paige halls.

Miner Hall was constructed in 1891 to serve as headquarters for the School of Theology and was named for Alonzo A.

[6] During World War I, the school's buildings were taken for use as barracks and training facilities and Dean McCollester held classes for the handful of students enrolled in his living room for the duration of hostilities.

[9] In 1953, when Dean Ratcliff died unexpectedly, Eugene Ashton, a Congregational minister and assistant chaplain of Tufts, was appointed to replace him until a successor could be found.

Shortly before his successor's appointment in 1954, Ashton released a report on the school arguing that it was "not in a particularly healthy state".

The American Unitarian Association (AUA) Board of Trustees in 1959 appointed a commission to study theological education in anticipation of merger with the Universalists.

While the aim was to become a graduate school independent of a college, resources were inadequate for even a quasi-independent existence, and in 1965 the faculties recombined.

However, the trustees' June 1967 recommendation for closure cited that the school had not "maintained its place of considerable distinction in theological education.

"[15] Tufts President Hallowell was given authority by a Massachusetts state court to dispose of school funds, and he created the Crane Program fund amounting to $213,000 (~$1.18 million in 2023) in 1972 to support Tufts's religion department and chaplaincy, as well as scholarships for students pursuing liberal ministry and social welfare work.