College Place was nothing more than sagebrush until Walla Walla College was established in 1892. The land was donated for the university by Dr. Nelson G. Blalock. College Place was given its name in 1891, after Seventh-Day Adventists in Washington and Oregon decided to establish a college in the area adjacent to Walla Walla's southwest border. Even before the first stones were laid for the college's first buildings, the land around the site was platted and Adventist families began buying lots. The 1960s saw major growth for the college as several new buildings were constructed.