NC State University Timeline
Important Dates in University History, 1887-2005
(Adapted from [Library Archives])
1887
March 7th, Legislation is passed establishing the North Carolina College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts.
1889
Alexander Q. Holladay named first president of the college. He serves until 1899.;
Holladay Hall is completed.
October 3rd, The College opens for classes.
Control of the Agricultural Experiment Station (now Agricultural Research Service) is transferred from the North Carolina Department of Agriculture to the new College.
1892
Cuban Jose Fabio Santo Trigo is the first foreign student to enroll in the college.
1893
June 20th, First graduation class of 19 students receives their degrees.
1899
George Tayloe Winston becomes the college's second president. He serves until 1908.
1901
Margaret Burke, the first female student, takes a course in physics.
1902
Mrs. Adeline Stevens, the first woman faculty member, is appointed an instructor in biology.
1903
The student yearbook, the Agromeck, is established.
Carolyn Sherman is appointed the first woman librarian
1908
Daniel Harvey Hill, Jr., appointed third college president. He serves until 1916.
1909
College officials sign the first memorandum of understanding for cooperative demonstration work with the United States Department of Agriculture. The Memorandum provides for the establishement of the Farmers' Boys' Clubs or Corn Clubs. These clubs were the forerunners of the 4-H, the name adopted for the program in 1911.
1913
May 26th, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, then assistant Secretary of the Navy, speaks at commencement exercises.
1914
Cooperative Agricultural Extension Service (now Cooperative Extension Service) is established at the college and at other land grant colleges by the Federal Smith-Lever Act.
1916
Wallace Carl Riddick is appointed fourth president of the college. He serves until 1923.
Total degrees awarded by the College reaches 1,000.
1917
Name of the college is changed to the North Carolina State College of Agriculture and Engineering.
School of Agriculture is established (now the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences).
1918
John Ripple is first All-American (football) in any sport.
1920
The student newspaper, the Technician, is established.
1921
A system of student government is established.
Cornerstone laying ceremonies are held for the Memorial Tower. The Tower will honor alumni who served in World War I (construction began in 1920).
Single year enrollment at the college reaches 1,000.
1923
School of Engineering is established (now College of Engineering).
Graduate School is established.
School of Science and Business is established.
Engineering Experiment Station is established.
Division of College Extension is established.
Eugene Clyde Brooks appointed fifth president of the college. He serves until 1934.
The College is awarded a chapter of Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society.
1925
Textile School is established (now College of Textiles).
1926
First Ph.D. is awarded to Jesse Mowry in Rural Sociology.
1927
School of Education is established (now the College of Education and Psychology).
First degrees are awarded to women: Jane McKimmon, Charlotte Nelson, and Mary Yarbrough.
1930
Morris Johnson is first All-American in basketball.
1931
Consolidation Act is passed by the General Assembly with the following provisions:
- North Carolina State became one of three campuses of the Consolidated University of North Carolina;
- The College's name is changed to the North Carolina State College of Agriculture and Engineering of the University of North Carolina;
- The School of Education became the Department of Education;
- The School of Science and Business is abolished. No new students will be admitted to this school after 1933.
1934
John William Harrelson, class of 1909, is named Dean of Administration. He serves until 1953.
1937
Basic Division is established. It is a service division made up of the non-degree granting departments.
Memorial Tower shaft is completed.
1939
October 3rd, the College celebrates the 50th anniversary of its opening.
1940
Gertrude Cox is the first woman full professor and first woman department head (Experimental Statistics).
1941
One of the most significant contributions to the war effort has been the diesel program developed by the Mechanical Engineering Department to train Naval Officers.
1942
North Carolina State College foundation is the first foundation established to attract private support for the College.
1945
Dean of Administration's title is changed to Chancellor.
1946
Minerals Research Laboratory (School of Engineering) is established at Asheville.
School of Architecture and Landscape Design is established (name changed to School of Design in 1948).
1947
August 28th, General Dwight D. Eisenhower speaks at the 40th Annual Farm and Home Week in Riddick Stadium.
1948
School of Education is re-established (now College of Education and Psychology).
1949
First time there are 1,000 or more graduates in one school year.
Total degrees awarded by the College reaches 10,000.
November 11th, Memorial Tower dedication ceremonies are held for the completed Shrine Room and Memorial Plaque.
Agricultural Researchers develop the first tobacco resistant to both Black Shank and Granville Wilt.
1950
School of Forestry is established (now College of Forest Resources).
1952
School of General Studies is established (non-degree grantng) (now College of Humanities and Social Sciences). It replaces the Basic Division.
1953
First African-American graduate students are Robert L. Clemons and Hardy Liston.
First non-government nuclear reactor in the world begins operation at NC State.
Carey Hoyt Bostian is named Chancellor. He serves until 1959.
1954
Peru Project is established, a cooperative effort between NCSU, the Foreign Operations Administration (Agency for International Development), and the Government of Peru to develop programs in agricultural and textile research, extension, and education.
Swimmers win Men's Outdoor National AAU Championship.
1954, 1956
Dick Fadgen wins seven NCAA and AAU individual championship swimming events.
1955
Edward Shinn develops the synthetic aorta.
1956
Swimmers (as an athletic club) win the Men's Indoor National AAU Championship.
Patricia Anne Sarvella is the first woman to receive a Ph.D. degree (genetics).
First African-American undergraduates, Edward Carson and Manuel Crockett, enroll in summer school.
Enrollment reaches 5,000.
1957
First African-American athletes are Manuel Crockett and Irwin Holmes, both in Track.
1958
A tobacco bulk curing unit is developed by the Department of Agricultural Engineering.
Research Triangle Institute at Research Triangle Park is established by NC State, Duke University, and UNC-Chapel Hill.
1959
John Tyler Caldwell is named Chancellor. He serves until 1975.
1960
September 17th, Presidential candidate John F. Kennedy makes a campaign speech at Reynolds Coliseum.
School of Physical Sciences and Applied Mathematics is established (now College of Physical and Mathematical Sciences).
Agricultural Policy Institute is established. One of two such organizations in the United States.
1962
Vivian Henderson, a visiting professor of Agricultural Economics, is the first African-American faculty member.
1963
B.A. degree is authorized for the renamed School of Liberal Arts (formerly the non-degree granting School of General Studies and now the College of Humanities and Social Sciences).
Name is changed to North Carolina State of the University of North Carolina at Raleigh.
1964
Total degrees awarded by the College reaches 25,000.
October 6th, President Lyndon B. Johnson makes a campaign speech in Reynolds Coliseum.
1965
Name is changed to North Carolina State University at Raleigh.
A lint-free washcloth is developed by John T. Bogdan. It is first used in the Gemini and Apollo space flights.
Water Resources Research Institute, a joint Federal-State program for the UNC System, is established at NC State.
1966
Center for Occupational Education is established. It is one of two such centers nationwide.
Triangle Universities Computation Center is established by NC State, Duke University, and UNC-Chapel Hill in Research Triangle Park. It is one of the world's largest university computing centers.
Single year enrollment reaches 20,000.
1967
Dr. Stanley G. Stephens is the first faculty member elected to the National Academy of Sciences.
Center for Urban Affairs and Community Services is established.
1969
Twenty-six graduates, all employees of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, play a key role in the voyage of the Apollo 11 space mission which is successful in placing the first men on the moon.
Center for Acoustical Studies is established.
1970
Walton C. Gregory develops NC4X, the "Atomic Peanut."
Cathy Sterling is elected the first woman Student Body President.
1971
International Potato Center is established in Peru by the University and Peruvian government in an effort to increase the world's supply of white potatoes.
1973, 1974
David Thompson is first African-American to be named All-American (basketball) in any sport.
1974
Men's basketball team wins its first NCAA championship.
First women's athletic team (basketball) begins play.
1975
Total degrees awarded by the University reaches 50,000.
Jackson Ashcroft Rigney is named Interim Chancellor.
1976
"Sweet acidophilus" milk, developed by Marvin Speck, is first marketed. Research began in the late 1960s.
Susan Yow is the first woman All-American (basketball) in any sport.
Joab Langston Thomas is named Chancellor. He serves until 1981.
1978
Ted Brown is first African-American to be named an All-American in football.
Humanities Extension Program is established.
"Monolithic Cascade" solar cell is built by researchers here and at the Research Triangle Institute.
1979, 1980
Women's Cross Country Team wins back to back national championships.
1980
Center for Economic and Business Studies is established.
Agricultural engineers perfect mechanical cucumber harvestor.
North Carolina Japan Center is established.
1981
D. H. Hill Library holdings reach one million volumes.
Microelectronics Center for North Carolina is established at NC State.
School of Veterinary Medicine admits its first class (now College of Veterinary Medicine).
Nash Nicks Winstead is named Interim Chancellor. He serves until 1982.
1982
Center for Communications and Signal Processing is established.
Center for Precision Engineering is established.
Bruce Robert Poulton is named Chancellor. He serves until 1989.
1983
Men's basketball team wins the NCAA Championship.
Biotechnology Program is established.
Total degrees awarded by the University reaches 75,000.
Integrated manufacturing Systems Engineering Institute is established.
1984
Center for Materials Research is established.
University receives 780-acre tract of land from the State of North Carolina. It is part of the Dorothea Dix Hospital property. This "Centennial Campus" will be built as a series of clusters. Within each cluster will be a mixture of academic buildings and private research buildings.
1985
Men's 4x100 Meter Relay Team wins the NCAA championship.
September 5th, President Ronald Reagan visits the University.
1986
The Center for Research in Scientific Computation is established.
1987
University celebrates the 100th Anniversary of its founding.
Center for Aseptic Processing and Packaging Studies is established.
1988
Mars Mission Research Center is established. This is a cooperative effort between the University and NC A&T State University.
The NCSU College Bowl Team competes in the "varsity sport of the mind," and wins the National Championship.
Coach Kay Yow's U.S. Olympic Women's Basketball Team wins the Olympic Gold Medal in Soeul, Korea.
1989
Larry K. Monteith is named Chancellor.
Dr. Christine Grant (Chemical Engineering) is appointed first African American female faculty member in the College of Engineering.
1990
February 2nd, President George Bush visits the University.
1992
Center for Robotics and Intelligent Machines is established.
College of Management is established.
1994
The University is awarded a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa.
The University is awarded a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa.
1996
Park Scholars Program founded.
Wentai Liu designs the prototype for the artificial retina.
1998
Marye Anne Fox is named Chancellor, the first woman to hold the office. She serves until 2004.
1999
NCSU becomes one of the first land-grant universities to offer master's and doctoral degrees in genomic science.
2002
Shelton Initiative for Leadership Development is launched.
NCSU Libraries is ranked 32nd of 112 ARL Libraries.
A study estimates that NCSU pumps $2.3 billion into the North Carolina economy.
2003
The Friday Institute for Educational Innovation is launched.
Jim Riviere becomes the first faculty member elected to the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies.
2004
Robert A. Barnhardt is named Interim Chancellor.
2005
James L. Oblinger is named Chancellor.