Athletics

Athletics teams began in 1866 with the advent of the first baseball team.  One by one, additional sports were added, and these first teams were all student run.  It wasn’t until 1904 that the Institutional College Athletics Board was established, and a more formal structure emerged.  This exhibit provides, through pictures and other documents, an overview of the long athletic tradition at our institution.  Some sports have been more thoroughly documented than others throughout the years.   You can see many additional photographs of athletics in the online yearbooks from 1900 to the present.   The dates for which we know the beginnings of various sports are:

Baseball (Base Ball): 1866

Indoor Athletic Team (included Gymnastics and Fencing):  1868

Football (Foot Ball): 1879

Lacrosse:  1887

Track & Field:  Field Days began in the late 1800s. 

Hockey:  1902

Basketball:  1905

Polo:  1923

Swimming:  1950

Pershing Rifles:  1952

INSTRUCTIONS:   When in this collection, click on “Browse All” to see the entire exhibit.