**Dalhousie University** is a public research university in Nova Scotia, Canada. Established in 1818 by George Ramsay, 9th Earl of Dalhousie, then Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia, it was founded as a non-denominational college modeled after the University of Edinburgh[2][5]. Initial funding came from customs duties accrued during the War of 1812 under Lieutenant Governor John Coape Sherbrooke, who allocated £7,000 for its endowment and £3,000 for construction[2].

### Early history and reorganization  
The institution struggled in its formative decades, offering no formal instruction until 1838[1][2]. Thomas McCulloch, a Presbyterian minister and educator, became its first principal, though the college operated intermittently and did not award degrees until after its reorganization in 1863[2][5]. University powers were granted in 1841, but the institution faced closures and was briefly converted into a high school in 1848 before Presbyterian-led efforts revitalized it as a degree-granting university[5].

### Growth and milestones  
In 1866, Dalhousie awarded its first Bachelor of Arts degree[3]. Key developments include the founding of Canada’s first college newspaper, the *Dalhousie Gazette* (1869), and the admission of women with equal access to scholarships in 1881[3]. Annie Isabella Hamilton became the first woman to earn a medical degree from the university in 1894, followed by James Robinson Johnston, its first Black graduate, who received a law degree in 1898[3].  

### 20th-century expansion  
The university relocated to Halifax’s Studley Campus in 1911, using locally quarried ironstone for its buildings[3]. Post-WWII growth saw the establishment of the Faculty of Graduate Studies (1949) and the appointment of industrialist C.D. Howe as its first chancellor in 1957[3]. Philanthropist Dorothy J. Killam’s 1966 endowment significantly advanced graduate studies, commemorated through the annual Killam Lecture Series[3].  

### Academic profile  
As a research-intensive institution, Dalhousie offers programs across 13 faculties including law, medicine, and marine sciences. It has been classified among Canadian U15 research universities and operates multiple affiliated teaching hospitals and research institutes.