Municipal universities may be defined as baccalaureate degree-granting institutions controlled by a board on which the public is heavily represented, and supported in whole or in part by local tax resources. The 14 schools that once fit this description did not appear in any single chronological period or geographic region, but each shared the distinguishing features of local tax support and local control. These shared features were paralleled by a common rationale in support of municipal higher education: young people would stay at home; the low cost of living at home and the low fees would extend educational opportunity; courses were practical; graduates would provide the city with needed manpower; universities would bring money and purchasing power to the city; and the university would serve as a center for civic culture. Despite these benefits, the municipal university movement never gained great popularity, because of the large population and tax base needed to support such an institution. Shortly after World War II, municipal universities, unable to meet the returning veterans' educational demands using only city tax resources, began to be incorporated into state educational systems. While community colleges share many of the same characteristics of the municipal college and are different in other respects, the community college has definitely inherited the commitment to increased educational access pioneered by the municipal university. (AYC)