The fortune thus acquired he devoted to a well-considered and practical plan of philanthropy. His career had shown him the great value of a trade to any man or woman. The schools taught every kind of knowledge except that which would enable a man to earn a living with his hands, which seemed to him the most important of all. He determined to do what he could remedy this defect, and in 1854, secured a block of land in New York City, at the junction of Third and Fourth Avenues, where, shortly afterwards, the cornerstone was laid of "The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art." It was completed five years later, and handed over to six trustees; a scheme of education was devised and special emphasis was laid upon "instruction in branches of knowledge by which men and women earn their daily bread; in laws of health and improvement of the sanitary condition of families as well as individuals; in social and political science, whereby communities and nations advance in virtue, wealth and power; and finally in matters which affect the eye, the ear, and the imagination, and furnish a basis for recreation to the working classes." Free courses of lectures were established, a free reading room, and free instruction was given in various branches of the useful arts. From that day to this, Cooper Union has been an ever-growing force for progress in the life of the great city; it has been a pioneer in the work of industrial education, which has, of recent years, reached such great proportions. Peter Cooper lived to see the institution which he had founded realize at least some of his hopes for it. He himself lived a most active life, taking a prominent part in many movements looking to the reform of national or civic abuses. In 1876, he was nominated by the national independent party as their candidate for president and received nearly a hundred thousand votes. Since his death, the institution which he founded has grown steadily in importance; other bequests have been added to his, and Cooper Union has come to stand, in a way, for civic righteousness.