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Milestones of TCU History

1873
Founded as AddRan Male and Female College, Thorp Spring, Texas. Addison Clark, president (until 1899).

1889
Property given to the Christian Churches of Texas, name changed to AddRan Christian University; J. J. Jarvis president of the board (until 1895).

1895
Moved to Waco, Texas, December; Col. J. Z. Miller, president of board (until 1899).

1899
T. E. Shirley, president of board (until 1909).

1902
Named changed to Texas Christian University; E. V. Zollars, president (until 1906).

1906
Clinton Lockhart, president (until1910).

1909
T. E. Tomlinson, president of board (until 1917).

1910
Main building at Waco destroyed by fire, March 22; the University moved to Fort Worth with classes in downtown buildings, September.

1911
Frederick Kershner, president (until 1915); school opened on present campus with Main Building, Jarvis and Goode Halls, September; first endowment received, $25,000, from L. C. Brite.

1912
Fort Worth Medical College adopted as medical department; charter member of the Association of Texas Colleges.

1913
Original Clark Hall completed.

1914
Brite College of the Bible founded, Brite Hall erected.

1915
School of Law added, E. R. Cockrell, principal.

1916
E. M. Waits, president (until 1941); S. J. McFarland, president of the board (until 1927).

1918
Medical College closed due to rising costs.

1920
Endowment of $300,000 attained; School of Law closed.

1921
Gymnasium building completed; recognition by and aid from General Education Board; elected to membership in the Association of American Colleges.

1922
Elected to membership in Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, including accreditation; became member of the Southwest Athletic Conference.

1923
Jubilee celebration of fiftieth anniversary; $500,000 endowment achieved; the Mary Couts Burnett Trust received.

1925
Mary Couts Burnett Library opened.

1926
Graduate School organized, first fieldhouse built.

1927
Van Zandt Jarvis, president of board (until 1940).

1928
University placed on approved list of Association of American Universities.

1930
New stadium erected on West Campus; University placed on approved list of American Association of University Women.

1935
University became charter member of the Southern University Conference.

1936
Evening College made distinct administrative unit.

1938
School of Business organized.

1939
Silver anniversary of Brite College of the Bible celebrated.

1940
R. H. Foster, president of board (until1941).

1941
M. E. Sadler, president (until 1959, when became chancellor until 1965); L. D. Anderson, president of board (until 1954); Brite College accredited by American Association of Theological Schools.

1942
Foster Dormitory completed.

1943
University reorganized into seven schools and colleges.

1946
Harris College of Nursing added as eighth academic unit.

1947
Tom Brown Dormitory, E. M. Waits Dormitory completed.

1948
Jubilee celebration of seventy-fifth anniversary of University; $5,000,000 endowment achieved; stadium enlarged to 33,500 capacity.

1949
Ed Landreth Hall and auditorium (Fine Arts) completed.

1950
TCU Summer School in Mexico established at Monterrey Tech.

1952
Winton-Scott Hall of Science completed.

1953
Stadium enlarged to 37,000 capacity; old fieldhouse burned.

1954
Religion Center completed; Milton Daniel, chairman of board (until 1958).

1955
Brown-Lupton Student Center, Pete Wright Dormitory completed; Jarvis Dormitory renovated.

1956
TCU-Amon G. Carter Stadium expanded to 47,000 capacity. Ranch Management Program established.

1957
Dan D. Rogers Hall (School of Business) completed; Milton E. Daniel and Colby D. Hall Dormitories completed.

1958
Lorin A. Boswell, chairman of board (until 1969); estate of Milton E. Daniel left in trust to University; Mary Couts Burnett Library enlarged; Sherley Dormitory completed, new Clark Dormitory built on site of Goode Hall; Bailey Building (old Brite Hall) renovated for School of Education.

1959
First Ph.D. programs approved; title of chief administrative officer changed from President to Chancellor.

1960
M. E. Sadler Hall (administration and classrooms) completed on site of original Clark Hall; first students enrolled in Ph.D. programs in physics and psychology.

1961
Dave Reed Hall (old Administration Building) rebuilt for classrooms, faculty offices, second cafeteria; sale of adjacent Worth Hills Golf Course to the University approved by voters of the city.

1962
Daniel-Meyer Coliseum built, seating 7,166; Ph.D. programs in English and mathematics inaugurated; University elected to membership in College Entrance Examination Board and as a sponsor of the Oak Ridge Institute of Nuclear Studies; Computer Center put into operation; Institute of Behavioral Research established.

1963
Worth Hills Golf Course acquired for future expansion; Brown-Lupton Health Center completed; Ph.D. program in chemistry begun.

1964
Five residence halls and cafeteria completed on Worth Hills property.

1965
Ph.D. program in history inaugurated; endowment of over $27,000,000 reached; Dr. M. E. Sadler retired as Chancellor (July 1); Dr. James M. Moudy elected Chancellor and inaugurated Nov. 19.

1966
Approved faculty leaves with pay; authorized creation of "The TCU Press;" received $3.4 million matching grant from Sid W. Richardson Foundation toward construction of Science-Research Center.

1967
Named School of Business "M. J. Neeley School of Business;" began participation in TAGER (The Assn. for Graduate Education and Research in North Texas) TV network; approved formation of a Faculty Assembly and Senate; Brown-Lupton Student Center expanded.

1968
Adopted new academic calendar with fall term ending before Christmas; established Pastoral Care and Training Center.

1969
Dr. M. J. Neeley chairman of board (until 1972); approved "New Century" program and goal; Leo Potishman Tennis Center completed; Bellaire North and Princeton House apartments purchased for student housing.

1970
Completed Sid W. Richardson Physical Sciences Building, Annie Richardson Bass Building for Harris College of Nursing and Home Economics and a new living-learning residence hall (named during 1971-72 session for Dr. and Mrs. Solomon Brachman); Phi Beta Kappa Chapter established February 24.

1971
Completed Cyrus K. and Ann C. Rickel Health and Physical Education Building and new women's residence hall (named during 1972-73 session for Mary Lipscomb Wiggins); formed Centennial Commission to plan 100th year observance during 1973; Friends of the Texas Christian University Libraries organized January 28; Tom Brown Hall renovated and refurnished.

1972
Administration reorganized into two major areas: academic and support, each headed by a vice chancellor; Theodore P. Beasley elected chairman of board; Waits and Milton Daniel Halls renovated and refurnished.

1973
Celebrated centennial year; $35 million achieved during New Century campaign for capital, operating and endowment funds; "Old Gym" remodeled for Division of Ballet, "Little Gym" as annex for Department of Art.

1974
William C. Conner elected chairman of board; Chancellor J. M. Moudy received grant from the Danforth Foundation for leave of absence during spring semester, Vice Chancellor and Provost Howard G. Wible named Acting Chancellor during that time.

1975
Miller Speech and Hearing Clinic building completed.

1976
Mary Potishman Lard Tennis Center completed for public and University use; third floor added to Annie Richardson Bass Building.

1977
Addison and Randolph Clark Society established to recognize donors of $1,000 or more annually; Texas Growth Companies Endowment Fund established.

1978
Ground broken for J. M. Moudy Building for Visual Arts and Communication (dedicated March 26, 1982); new building for Starpoint School completed.

1979
Graduate program re-organized by school and college, replacing Graduate School; Bayard Friedman elected chairman of board; Martin-Moore Hall named; Dr. James M. Moudy retired as chancellor, succeeded on Sept. 5 by Dr. William E. Tucker (inaugurated April 16, 1980).

1980
Brite Divinity School passes $7.5 million goal of its first fund-raising campaign; goal of $10 million to expand library achieved.

1981
Library collection passes one million items; $5 million endowment for financial aid received from Theodore and Beulah Beasley Foundation.

1982
The 40,000th graduate received a degree at summer commencement; addition almost doubling size of the library occupied (dedicated March 25, 1983).

1983
Endowment reaches and passes $100 million for first time; appointments made to The 1990s Project: A Commission on TCU and the Future; Chancellor William E. Tucker elected to two-year term as moderator of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).

1984
Expansion of building for M. J. Neeley School of Business approved; suggestions received from The 1990s Project; football team gains national attention and plays in Bluebonnet Bowl.

1985
Limitations placed on freshman, transfer enrollments; duties of vice chancellor for admistrative services and student affairs divided among two positions as fifth vice chancellor is added.

1986
Construction of new residence hall approved.

1987
Groundbreaking for Tandy Hall expansion of M.J. Neeley School of Business and Moncrief Hall, a new residence hall; School of Fine Arts re-named College of Fine Arts and Communication; new University Curriculum Requirements approved.

1988
Academic Services Center put into full operation; Moncrief Hall dedicated.

1989
Tandy Hall dedicated; endowment passes $200 million.

1990
John Roach elected chairman of board; 50,000th graduate receives degree; more than $3 million in gifts assure permanence of Ranch Management Program; priorities for academic initiatives in the 1990s include a program in engineering, stronger focus on Ph.D. programs, strengthened international study opportunities for faculty and students.

1991
Master plan for the physical campus completed and approved; central dining hall renovated for $2.2 million.

1992
First freshmen admitted to new engineering program; Winthrop Rockefeller Building for Ranch Management completed (dedicated January, 1993); first "global theme semester" held and student exchange with Universidad de las Americas - Puebla approved; $15 million bequest from estates of B.M. and Frances Britain received.

1993
Board of Trustees approve planning of a comprehensive fund-raising campaign, the first in a quarter century; endowment passes $400 million.

1994
The Walsh Complex, a $2.5 million expansion of the athletics weight training and rehabilitation center, is built; when the Southwest Conference acts to disband after 1995, TCU joins the Western Athletic Conference, then wins the SWC football co-championship and plays in Independence Bowl; The Next Frontier Campaign is publicly announced with a $100 million goal, with $61 million raised or committed during the "silent phase" of the five-year campaign.

1995
Ground is broken for the $6 million Dee J. Kelly Alumni and Visitors Center (dedicated at Homecoming 1996); computer/information technology extended to all residence hall rooms; pre-enrollment "Frog Camp" becomes integral to freshman program.

1996
First class of engineering students awarded degrees; faculty expanded by ten primarily to enhance freshman seminar program; ground broken for $11.5 million F. Howard and Mary D. Walsh Center for the Performing Arts; renewal/reconfiguration of residence halls approved.

1997
The combined TCU/Brite endowment exceeds $750 million after completion of the five-year Next Frontier Campaign which raised more than $126 million; Pete Wright Hall razed to make way for the Tom Brown/Pete Wright residential community, completed in 1998; the Department of Engineering receives accreditation; TCU establishes partnership with Columbia University to send students to Biosphere II.

1998
The Mary D. and F. Howard Walsh Center for Performing Arts dedicated; the TCU London Centre, the University's first permanent oversees facility, opens its doors to the first class of students in the fall; Chancellor William E. Tucker retires after 19 years of service, paving the way for the University's ninth chancellor, Michael R. Ferrari; the department of music renamed the School of Music and becomes one of the country's few all-Steinway schools. TCU defeats USC in the Sun Bowl, 28-19.

1999
Tom Brown/Pete Wright Residential Complex, housing upperclassmen in apartment style quarters, opens in January; work begins on the William E. and Jean Jones Tucker Technology Center; Commission on the Future of TCU kicks off in fall; Lowdon track is dedicated; ground is broken for 35,000 square-foot Justin Athletics Center; Frogs beat East Carolina 28-14 in the Mobile Alabama Bowl; Trustees approve an aggressive program to improve classroom technology and hire 21 new faculty.

2000
Schools and colleges reorganized from five to seven--AddRan College of Humanities and Social Sciences, M.J. Neeley School of Business, the College of Communication, the School of Education, the College of Fine Arts, the College of Health and Human Sciences, and the College of Science and Engineering; the James A. Ryffel Entrepreneurship Center establishe; TCU parents Steve and Sarah Smith donate $10.5 million for an entrepreneurship facility, the largest private gift in University history; Brite's Leibrock Village dedicated; Running back LaDainian Tomlinson becomes the third Frog to run for the Heisman, placing 4th in the nation in the final vote and earning the Doak Walker Award; Frogs end with an 11-1 football season and go to their third consecutive bowl game.

2001
Spring closes the most successful athletics program in school history as the University leaves the WAC and joins Conference USA.