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History of the College Seal | Framingham Footprints
1839 Cyrus Peirce appointed Principal
July 1839 Normal School opens in Lexington, Mass.
1842 Samuel J. May appointed Principal
1844 Normal School moves to West Newton
1844 Cyrus Peirce returned as Principal
1845 Normal School designated State Normal School
1847 Domingo Faustino Sarmiento, later president of Argentina, visits the Normal School
1849 Eben S. Stearns appointed Principal
1850 First printed diplomas issued at the Normal School
1850 Lucretia Crocker, first woman supervisor for Boston Public Schools, graduates
1853 Normal School moves to Bare Hill, Framingham
1854 George B. Bigelow appointed Principal
1857 Dred Scott decision by U.S. Supreme Court
1859 Charles Darwin publishes The Origin of Species
1861-1865 U.S. Civil War
1863 President Abraham Lincoln issues Emancipation Proclamation
1864 Quarter centennial celebration of the Normal School
1866 Annie Johnson appointed Principal, first woman in Mass. to serve in that role
1867 First Model School established at Normal School
1869 First boarding residence built at the Normal School
1875 Ellen Hyde appointed Acting Principal and later Principal
1876 Alexander Graham Bell patents the telephone
1879 Abby May appointed first Official Visitor, Board of Higher Ed., first woman Visitor in Mass.
1879 Thomas Edison makes first light bulb
1881 Olivia Davidson graduates from Normal School. Marries Booker T. Washington, founder of Tuskegee Institute
1886 Crocker Hall built and named for Lucretia Crocker
1888 Electricity installed in Normal School dormitory
1889 May Hall built
1893 High school diplomas required for admission to Normal School
1896 Practice School opens in May Hall. Portia Washington, daughter of Booker T. Washington, attends
1898 Boston School of Household Arts becomes part of Normal School
1898 Henry Whittemore appointed Principal
1899 Kindergarten established at Normal School
1900 World's population reaches 1 billion
1900 Framingham's Official Town Seal dedicated, featuring May Hall
1901 Tunnels connected at the Normal School between May and Crocker Halls
1901 Wells Hall constructed at Normal School (Razed 1962)
1903 Wright brothers fly 1st airplane
1908 The Quill, forerunner of The Dial, published at the Normal School
1909 Senior Class Day inaugurated at the Normal School
1914-1918 World War I
1914 Normal Hall burns, construction of Peirce Hall begins
1915 Practice School moves to Jonathan Maynard building, near the Centre Common
1915 First Dial published
1917 James Chalmers appointed President
1918 Red Sox win World Series
1920 Horace Mann Hall completed at the Normal School
1920 19th Amendment gives women the right to vote
1923 First Bachelor of Science in Education degrees awarded
1924 Home Economics Club formed at Normal School
1927 The Jazz Singer, first sound movie, is shown
1930 Francis A. Bagnall appointed President
1932 The Normal School becomes the State Teachers College at Framingham
1932 First issue of the Gatepost published
1934 First May Day celebration at the College
1936 New College Seal designed
1936 Martin F. O'Connor appointed President
1938 First Senior Investiture at the College
1938 Hurricane damages May and Crocker Halls
1938 May Hall rebuilt without turrets. Crocker Hall renovated
1939-1945 World War II
1939 President Martin F. O'Connor composes the College Hymn for centennial celebration
1942 College accredited by American Assoc. of Colleges for Teacher Education
1948 The Marshall Plan begins giving economic aid to war-torn countries.
1948 Harry S Truman elected President of the United States
1949 The United States and allies set up NATO
1949 Household Arts becomes Home Economics
1951 Americans see the first nationwide telecast
1953 U.S. population in 1953: 159,700,000
1955 Gym and auditorium added to Dwight Hall
1956 Continuing Education Division established
1959 College empowered to offer Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees
1959 Bement House purchased
1960 State Teachers College becomes State College at Framingham
1960 John F. Kennedy elected President of the United States
1961 Master of Education Degree is authorized at College
1961 D. Justin McCarthy appointed President
1962 O'Connor Hall dedicated
1962 Bement House becomes President's House
1963 President John F. Kennedy assassinated
1963 Hemenway Hall completed
1964 Male students enroll at College
1964 125th Anniversary celebrated
1965 Nexus, forerunner of Onyx, published
1965-1975 Vietnam War
1968 Larned Hall completed
1968 Master of Science in Education authorized
1969 Apollo 11 lands on the moon
1969 Whittemore Library completed
1969 Master of Arts degree authorized
1970 Christa Corrigan McAuliffe, first teacher in space, graduates from College
1972 College changes curriculum to 32 course structure
1973 College opens new buildings: Towers, Linsley, Foster, and Hemenway Annex
1976 D. Justin McCarthy College Center opens
1981 AIDS first diagnosed and identified
1983 May Hall renovated
1985 Paul F. Weller appointed President
1986 Christa Corrigan McAuliffe Center established
1989 Berlin Wall torn down
1989 College celebrates sesquicentennial
1991 U.S.S.R. dissolves, Russia is reborn
1996 North Atlantic Free Trade Association is created
1996 Raymond N. Kieft appointed President
1999 Helen L. Heineman appointed President. Becomes first woman and first FSC faculty member to hold title
2000 World's population exceeds 6 billion
2000 Ecumenical and Cultural Center re-opens
2001 Athletic and Recreational Center opens
2002 Wireless laptop computers required for freshmen
2003 Framingham State College Celebrates 150 Years in Framingham
