Historical Timeline

Sun setting over King Library

National University 1941–1970

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1941–1945

  • December 7, 1941, Pearl Harbor Naval Station attacked; United States enters World War II
  • War depletes civilian enrollment, military training schools prepare 10,000 recruits and reserves

1945

  • President Alfred H. Upham dies in office; A. K. Morris, acting president, 1945&#8211 ;46

1946

  • Ernest H. Hahne (1946–52) assumes the presidency; "Veterans' Village" ("Vetville") erected
  • Graduate School established as a separate academic division

1947

  • John E. Dolibois named executive secretary of Miami Alumni Association

1949

  • Reid Hall residence for men, Rowan Hall Naval ROTC building constructed
  • Upham Hall center section (humanities) constructed; north wing, 1950, and south wing , 1965 (natural sciences)

1950

  • WMUB FM Radio founded

1952

  • President Hahne dies; Clarence W. Kreger, acting president, 1952–53
  • Billings Natatorium, Collins and McBride residence halls constructed; Tallawanda Hall (1908) acquired

1953

  • John D. Millett (1953–64) assumes the presidency

1954

  • East Dining Hall (later "East End") constructed by Armco Steel with two cafeteria lines to serve 700

1956

  • Porter residence hall, Administration Building (later Roudebush Hall) constructed

1957

  • Work begins on Dennison (1958), Center (later MacCracken, 1961), Scott (1957) residence halls
  • University Center (later Phillip R. Shriver Center) constructed

1958

  • Sesquicentennial celebration year, 1958–59; Old Main (old Harrison Hall) demolished
  • Walter Havighurst publishes The Miami Years (revised 1969 and 1984)
  • Hiestand Hall (School of Fine Arts), Miami Manor (married student housing) constructed

1959

  • School of Applied Science founded; Dean of Educational Services created
  • Senator John F. Kennedy speaks at Miami Field; Martin Luther King, Jr. speaks in University Center
  • McGuffey House (1833) acquired for museum; designated National Historic Landmark, 1966
  • Bishop Memorial Gates; Sesquicentennial Chapel; Brandon, Dennison north wing, McFarland residence halls constructed
  • February 17, "Sesquicentennial Convocation" marks Miami's first formal Charter Day
  • Laws Hall (business administration), Williams Hall (WMUB studios, communication) constructed

1960

  • Harrison Hall (social sciences) on site of Old Main, John W. Browne Stables constructed

1961

  • Anderson, Dodds, Stanton, MacCracken (addition) residence halls; Harris, Erickson dining halls constructed
  • Culler Hall (natural sciences) constructed

1962

  • Edwin Fulwider's Biography of a University mural created for University Center Heritage Room
  • Delta Delta Delta Sundial constructed
  • Dorsey, Minnich residence halls; Warfield Hall (Student Affairs) constructed
  • Phillips Hall (physical education), MacMillan Hospital center wing constructed

1964

  • John D. Millett resigns presidency, named first chancellor of Ohio Board of Regents
  • Mississippi Summer Project student volunteers train on Western College campus

1965

  • Phillip R. Shriver (1965–81) assumes the presidency

1966

  • Miami University Middletown founded
  • Flower, Hahne residence halls; King Library phase one constructed

1967

  • Shideler Hall (geography and geology), Murstein Alumni Center constructed

1968

  • Miami University Hamilton founded
  • Miami European Center (named for John E. Dolibois, 1988), opened
  • Benton Hall (psychology), Millett Hall (assembly hall, sports arena) constructed

1969

  • Institute for Environmental Sciences founded
  • McGuffey Laboratory School, Center for Performing Arts (theatre and music) constructed
  • Emerson and Morris residence halls constructed

1970

  • Tappan residence hall, Hughes Laboratories (chemistry) constructed
  • April 15, Rowan Hall occupied by war protesters and Black Student Action Association, 176 arrested
  • April 16, strike called, Oxford Campus; May 4, four students killed by National Guard at Kent State University
  • May 7, President Shriver closes Oxford campus; reopens May 17