BLOOMINGTON ( 25News Now ) - Illinois Wesleyan University is marking its 175th anniversary, and all these years later, there’s some uncertainty how the Bloomington liberal arts school obtained its name.

IWU was originally known simply as “Illinois University.” At some point after documents were signed but before they were filed at the courthouse, someone added “Wesleyan” with a caret symbol.

“Presumably that’s because of the ties with the Methodist Church and its founder John Wesley, but the exact story of how it came to be, we don’t know,” said University Archivist Liz Bloodworth.

Documents about Wesleyan’s founding and its very early years include a newspaper advertisement for the school from 1851. It appeals to families grappling with the rapid technological advancements of the i

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