Chronology of University Events
With over 125 years of history, Walla Walla College, now University, has seen its share of trials, tragedy, and celebrations. Here, listed in chronological order, is just a sampling of events that have shaped who we are. Sources include Terrie Aamodt鈥檚 鈥淎 Bold Venture : a History of Walla Walla College鈥� (1992) and 鈥�60 Years of Progress : the Anniversary History of Walla Walla College鈥� (1952).
| 1892 | December 7 | holds its first class, enrollment 103 |
| 1896 | May 18 | First graduation, |
| 1897 | April 25 | planted on campus |
| 1899 | August | opens |
| 1901 | March 31 | WWC is incorporated |
| 1902 | Nov/Dec | Typhoid epidemic in College Place; three students die |
| 1903 | January | Smallpox epidemic in College Place |
| 1909 | April 22 | Jubilee Program celebrates paying off the college debt |
| May 24 | First baccalaureate degree issued | |
| August 6 | drillers strike water supply | |
| 1910 | October 13 | The laundry and boiler room at the back of North Hall (old Administration building) catch fire; a wind shift saves the residence hall section |
| 1911 | October | New power plant replaces one destroyed in 1910 fire |
| 1913 | January 27 | University of Washington grants accreditation to the preparatory department of WWC for one year |
| March 28 | College Place SDA church () opens | |
| Autumn | WWC enrollment reaches | |
| 1914 | March 9 | discontinued |
| May | is created (precursor of AS麻豆传媒) | |
| Sept. 9 | Bachelor of Music degree instituted | |
| 1915 | May | Western Collegian (the first yearbook) is published |
| 1916 | February | leaves 48 inches of snow in 54 hours |
| September | Collegian (a monthly magazine) is first published | |
| 1917 | May | Mountain Ash (the renamed yearbook) is first published |
| 鈥攁 new record | ||
| May 24 | Alumni Association organized | |
| 1918 | November 3 | Flu epidemic; college closes for about a week |
| 1919 | January 18 | College Place SDA church (the first Village Hall) burns |
| January 28 | of the old Ad Building | |
| 1920 | April | (the second and current Village Hall) |
| 1922 | Spring | ASWWC replaces Collegiate Association |
| 1924 | Science Building completed | |
| 1925 | February 5 | Collegian becomes a weekly paper |
| 1926 | January 21 | College enrollment reaches 500 students |
| 1927 | April 28 | is established |
| Fall | completed | |
| 1928 | Fall | is established |
| 1931 | Mar. 31-Apr.1 | covers a few streets in 4-5 ft of water |
| April 22 | First accreditation report denies accreditation to WWC | |
| 1933 | July 1 | Fire destroys most of Rachel Oakes Preston House (women鈥檚 residence hall) |
| October 17 | WWC admitted to the Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools of Seventh-day Adventists by the Board of Regents (denominational accreditation) | |
| 1934 | Autumn | completed |
| 1935 | January 15 | WWC receives senior college accreditation from the University of Washington |
| April 3 | WWC receives four-year accreditation from the Northwest Association of Secondary and Higher Schools | |
| 1936 | 1936 | Conard Hall dedicated |
| July 15 | 6.0 earthquake rattles windows at WWC | |
| 1938 | August 4 | Fire in the basement |
| 1939 | Spring | opens |
| 1940 | Dec. 12 | Men鈥檚 residence hall quarantined because of influenza epidemic |
| 1942 | is built in College Place | |
| 1944 | May 11 | is inhabited |
| 1945 | Dec. 24 | is incorporated |
| 1947 | Summer | School of Nursing opens at |
| September | , though unfinished, is occupied | |
| 1948 | Autumn | Master in Biology approved |
| 1950 | June | Master in Education approved |
| 1954 | August | is purchased at Rosario Beach, near Anacortes, Washington |
| Autumn | First Mask is published | |
| 1957 | October | Over 100 residence hall students are incapacitated by the flu |
| 1958 | Cafeteria (later named ) is built | |
| October | College drills a new artesian well to replace 1909 well | |
| 1959 | January | Enrollment raises above 1400 for first time |
| 1962 | October 20 | (now University Church) holds first service |
| 1963 | April 25 | goes on the air for first time |
| 1964 | (WWVA) opens in current location | |
| April 29 | officially named, dedicated November 1st | |
| 1965 | August 22 | dedicated |
| Nov. 14 | College Bakery closes | |
| 1966 | , , , and the academy annex all removed during the school year | |
| February 27 | Music department moves into the , dedicated December 4th | |
| 1967 | June 2 | Life Sciences building () is dedicated |
| 1969 | Alumni Gym is opened | |
| 1970 | October | Highrise women鈥檚 residence hall () opens |
| October 3 | Biology Lodge near Tollgate, Oregon burns | |
| 1971 | October 11 | Engineering Department is accredited by the Engineers鈥� Council for Professional Development |
| 1972 | April | Board approves the purchase of , which opened in September |
| December | College is reaccredited for ten years | |
| 1973 | May 17 | OPS ceases to function |
| 1974 | January 13 | opens |
| Autumn | opens in College Place | |
| 1975 | January 8 | Fire in a building adjacent to Foreman Hall damages the residence hall building |
| 1976 | October | Enrollment tops 2000 for first time |
| 1977 | Health Sciences Offices open | |
| 1978 | Nursing Residence Hall, Portland Campus (Howard ) opens | |
| Spring | ||
| March 23 | is destroyed by fire | |
| Autumn | Classes begin in Industrial Technology Center (now Center or CTC) | |
| 1980 | April | Sociology and Social Work department is accredited by the Council on Social Work Education. |
| 1981 | ||
| September 4 | closes | |
| 1988 | January | First Master of Social Work classes taught |
| 1994 | Nov. 3 | (Rigby) dedication |
| 1996 | August 20 | ribbon cutting |
| 1997 | School of Social Work and Sociology opens campus in Missoula, Montana | |
| April 27 | dedicated | |
| 2001 | School of Social Work and Sociology opens campus in , Montana | |
| May | (Rosario) opens | |
| 2003 | Autumn | Original Administration building |
| Sept. 16 | official opening | |
| 2004 | August 22 | (new) ribbon cutting |
| Dec. 17 | Rogers Elementary School | |
| 2007 | April 28 | Grand opening of new |
| September 1 | Walla Walla College officially becomes | |
| 2008 | Summer | Completed |
| 2009 | Summer | The Hebbel-Janke (women's) completed & dedicated on October 4th |
| 2010 | March | The Express expansion completed |
| November | Nursing, Health, PE, and Social Work remodeling of WEC finished | |
| 2011 | November 3 | Opens |
| 2015 | Master of Arts in Media Ministry (changed to Cinema, Religion, and Worldview in 2018) established | |
| 2015-2016 | June - December | College Avenue reconstruction project; - and - |
| 2017 | Bowers Hall remodel; , , , and | |
| 2017 | Move of and remodel of the | |
| 2020 | March 13 | , campus closes and all classes and tests go online for the end of Winter quarter and all Spring quarter. Graduation 2020 is held online for the first time in history! |
| June | First doctorate degree offered: Doctor of Social Work | |
| 2021 | August | A new well starts to be |
| 2023 | Fall | Master of Engineering first offered |
| 2025 | Winter | Master of Business Administration first offered |