It was founded in 1850 as the Western Reserve Eclectic Institute by Amos Sutton Hayden and other members of the Disciples of Christ Church.

[6] On November 7 that year, they chose the village of Hiram as the site for the school because the founders considered this area of the Western Reserve to be "healthful and free of distractions".

[7] The following month, on December 20, the founders accepted the suggestion of Isaac Errett and named the school the Western Reserve Eclectic Institute.

[6] The institute's original charter was authorized by the state legislature on March 1, 1850, and the school opened several months later, on November 27.

The next president to have a major impact on the college was Ely V. Zollars, who increased enrollment significantly, established a substantial endowment and created a program for the construction of campus buildings.

[7] In 1967, Paul and Maxine Frohring donated their recently acquired 75 acres of land in Garrettsville to Hiram College to promote wildlife research.

Beginning in 2011, Land Stewardship Manager Emliss Ricks has been working on establishing grasslands in three locations on the property.

[10] The first location is a one-acre prairie to maintain the natural plant diversity, and it was established by the late botany professor Matt Hils.

The college offers 33 majors and 40 minors for traditional undergraduates, in addition to pre-professional programs for specific fields.

Hiram's academic program consists of five schools: Arts, Humantities & Culture; Business & Communication; Education, Civil Leadership & Social Change; Health & Medical Humanities; and Science & Technology.

[14] The college's curriculum is currently marketed under the name Hiram Connect, which involves four steps: First Year Colloquium/Foundations of the Liberal Arts, Declaration of Major, Experiential Learning, and a Capstone Project.

Stunt, an all-female cheerleading discipline included in the NCAA Emerging Sports for Women program, competes in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference.

[22] The Hiram College basketball team won the gold medal in the collegiate division of the 1904 Summer Olympics in St.

[28] Hiram has close to 70 registered student clubs and organizations in eight categories: Academic, Greek Social, Musical, Political and Activism, Publications and Communications, Religious, Special Interest and Service, and Sports and Recreation.

Since 1971, Hiram has maintained a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa, the national honor society for the liberal arts.