Western Oregon University history

In November 1910, an initiative petition (Measure 10) to establish a normal school at Monmouth, passed by 55.6%. The name was changed, for the fourth time, to Oregon Normal School.

Monmouth, 1936. [Brochure summarizing the history of campus buildings up to 1936.] WOU Library call number: F884.M74 O71 1936

Cox, Joseph Alfred. “Development of Health and Physical Education for Men at the Oregon Normal School: A Proposed Set-Up.” MS, Oregon State University, 1938. [Cox served as football coach and PE director]

In 1939, the Oregon Legislature changed the name for the fifth time, to Oregon College of Education.

WOU Library call number: F884.M74 1956 (Reference & circulating copies)

Monmouth, 1971. [Brochure written on the occasion of the opening of Campbell Hall’s cornerstone in 1971]. WOU Library call number: LD4344.A4.C3

Monmouth, 1976. [Appendix contains transcribed minutes of the Board of Trustees for Monmouth University and Christian College, as well as other records they kept.] WOU Library call number: F822.P7 L4 (reference and circulating copies) Schalock, H Del.

Monmouth, Polk County Historical Society, 1978. [History of street names in Monmouth, Independence, and Falls City] WOU Library call number: Reference F882.P7C52

In 1979, the institution was renamed Western Oregon State College to reflect the school's growing academic programs in the liberal arts fields.

In 1981, the institution was renamed Western Oregon State College to reflect the school's growing academic programs in the liberal arts fields.

WOU Library call number: F882.P7 H58 1987 Reference Portrait and Biographical Record of the Willamette Valley.

The first official Founders’ Day was celebrated in January 1995.

The Baseball team on campus has experienced much success in the GNAC, winning ten consecutive conference titles since 2001.

The Track and Field teams have also performed well within the conference, with the men's team winning four consecutive GNAC Indoor Track titles since 2008.

In the fall of 2010, the men's and women's cross country teams earned their first berths in school history to the NCAA National Championships where they placed 20th and 21st, respectively.

WOU was an inaugural winner of the Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) award recognized by Insight Into Higher Education on November 15, 2012.

In 2014 WOU was recognized as one of the top 100 colleges or universities in America and the only one in the Pacific Northwest in adding economic value and benefit to its graduates.

History students worked with our community partner, the Oregon Women’s History Consortium, to provide research and content for the Oregon 2020 project commemorating the centenary of the ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment in 2020.