Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania history

Bloomsburg, town, seat (1846) of Columbia county, east-central Pennsylvania, United States, on the Susquehanna River and Fishing Creek, 40 miles (64 km) southwest of Wilkes-Barre.

In 1856 it was renamed Bloomsburg Literary Institute.

1866: June 16 - The Literary Institute trustees purchase three acres of land for a new building

1867: May 25 - A bell is raised into the cupola of Institute Hall and rung for the first time

1868: June 25 - Cornerstone laying ceremony for the first dormitory is held

The name became Bloomsburg Literary Institute and State Normal School in 1869.

1870: June 23 - The date of the first graduation ceremony for the Bloomsburg State Normal School

1889: July 31 - The trustees purchase two plots of land, later the site of Elwell Hall

1890: May 9 - The first official baseball game in school history is played

1892: October 22 - The first official football game in school history is played

1894: December 13 - The first official basketball game in school history is played

1895: May - The new campus athletic field hosts its first athletic event

1900: December 7 - The clock is installed in the Institute Hall tower

1901: June 26 - Simon Palmer is the first Native American graduate

1903: July 17 - The trustees approve the purchase of Buckalew Place

1904: February 4 - Fire damages the employees’ dormitory, later named North Hall

1906: May 12 - The second athletic field, called Mount Olympus, hosts its first athletic event

1907: March 25 - Science Hall, now Old Science, opens for the first time

1908: April 12 - The trustees purchase land along Spruce Street, the future site of Ben Franklin Hall

1910: May 2 - The first May Day ceremony is held on campus

1911: Fall - The Alma Mater is sung for the first time

1915: June 23 - Helen Parks is the first African-American graduate

1916: May 22 - The Bloomsburg State Normal School is purchased by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

1919: June 30 - The first session of summer school begins

1920: June 5 - The ceremony is held to dedicate the Tiffany stained glass windows in Waller Hall, now in Andruss Library

1922: Summer - Buckalew Place, after being rented out for 12 years, is remodeled and once again becomes the home of the Normal School principal

1923: March 3 - Publication of the first campus newspaper, Hill Top News and Views

1927: June 10 - The first bachelor of science degree in education is awarded

1928: November 17 - The first official Homecoming is held

1929: October 25 - The college purchased 18 and a half acres of land from Spruce Street to the east, linking the campus to Buckalew Place

1930: January 25 - The first official wrestling match in school history is held

1931: March - The first permanent light is installed on the Carver Hall dome

1933: October 9 - The husky is adopted as the official school athletic mascot

1936: Spring - The third athletic field hosts its first athletic contest

1940: September - A civilian pilot training program is started at the Bloomsburg Airport

1943: July 1 - The first United States Navy V-12 Officer training program cadets arrive on campus

1945: October 24 - The V-12 Officer Training program comes to an end

1947: May 2 - The first Fashion Show sponsored by Business Education is held

1948: November 13 - The football team completes the first undefeated season in program history

1950: April 28 - The college is accredited for the first time by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools

1954: February 19 - The beacon on Carver Hall is lit, dedicated to students who died in WWII

1956: Fall - The college’s enrollment surpasses 1,000 students for the first time

1957: October 18 - The first official Homecoming Parade is held

1960: March 19 - The wrestling team wins the first national title in school history at the NAIA Championships

1962: September 26 - The first land on the upper campus is acquired when the former Bloomsburg Country Club is purchased

1963: February 1 - The first official women’s basketball game is held

1964: October - The College celebrates its 125th anniversary

1965: April 23 - The first Reading Conference on campus is held

1966: September 14 - Opening day of the first campus library building

1967: June - The Ben Franklin Laboratory School closes, ending 98 years of an elementary school on campus

1968: September - The first high-rise building on campus, Elwell Hall, opens

1969: May 25 - Commencement is held for the first time at the Bloomsburg Fairgrounds

1970: May 20 - The Bloomsburg Foundation is established

1971: March - The Black Student Society is recognized as the first campus multicultural student organization

1972: December 2 - The first basketball game is played in Nelson Fieldhouse

1973: November 6 - For the first time students are able to vote on campus in a local election

1974: March 16 - Shorty Hitchcock becomes the first NCAA individual champion in school history when he wins a wrestling title

1975: January 17 - After 50 years the student newspaper, the Maroon and Gold, is renamed the Campus Voice

1979: October 6 - The costumed husky mascot makes its first appearance

1981: November 21 - The women’s field hockey team wins its first national title

1982: May 2 - The inaugural class is inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame

The institution’s current title, Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, was officially adopted when commonwealth legislation established the 14-member State System of Higher Education on July 1, 1983.

1984: October 27 - The dedication ceremony is held for the husky statue on the Carver Hall lawn

1985: September 18 - The ceremonial opening is held for the pedestrian walkway over Lightstreet Road

1986: January 1 - The Foundation, now the Bloomsburg University Foundation, is reactivated

1987: March 21 - Rick Bonomo wins his third consecutive NCAA wrestling title

1988: October 22 - The more than one-year Sesquicentennial Celebration begins

1989: Fall - The library’s first online catalog is now accessible to campus users

1995: December 15 - The first graduate commencement ceremony is held in the Haas Center

1996: December 14 - Archbishop and Nobel Prize winner Desmond Tutu speaks at commencement

1997: April 20 - Field Hockey and Softball head coach Jan Hutchinson becomes the first women’s coach in NCAA history with 1,000 total career victories

1998: September 11 - The dedication ceremony is held for the current Harvey A. Andruss Library

1999: March 23 - Opening of the QUEST climbing wall on the upper campus

2001: September 5 - The rebuilt Centennial Hall is dedicated

2005: August 27 - The newest incarnation of the Husky mascot, named Roongo, is introduced at the season-opening football game

2006: April 22 - The remodeled Navy Hall is rededicated

2007: November 3 - The football team wins the 500th game in program history

2009: August 22 - A grave marker for Henry Carver is dedicated in Riverside Cemetery, Denver, Colorado

2010: February 7 - Former All-American football player Jahri Evans earns a Super Bowl ring when the New Orleans Saints win the NFL title

2012: April 27 - The rebuilt Sutliff Hall is dedicated

2014: October - The University concludes celebrating its 175th anniversary

2015: June 12 - The new home of the BU Foundation, the Greenly Center on Main Street, is dedicated

Bashar W. Hanna, Ph.D., became the 19th person to serve as president of Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania when he began his tenure in July 2017.