Vanderbilt University, colloquially known as Vandy, is a private research university located in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1873, the university is named in honor of shipping and rail magnate "Commodore" Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1 million endowment despite having never been to the South. The Commodore hoped that his gift and the greater work of the university would help to heal the sectional wounds inflicted by the Civil War.