The University of Minnesota was founded as a preparatory school in 1851, seven years before the territory of Minnesota became a state. Financial problems forced the school to close during the Civil War, but with the help of Minneapolis entrepreneur John Sargent Pillsbury, it reopened in1867. Known as the father of the University, Pillsbury, who was a University regent, state senator, and governor, used his influence to establish the school as the official recipient of public support from the Morrill Land-Grant Act, designating it as Minnesota's land-grant university. William Watts Folwell was inaugurated as the first president of the University on December 22, 1869. In 1873, two students received the first bachelor of arts degrees. In 1888, the first doctor of philosophy degree was awarded. The Duluth campus joined the University in 1947; the Morris campus opened in 1960, and the Crookston campus in 1966, and the Rochester campus in 2006.