1939
The administration of President Leon W. Hartman began with a formal inauguration on December 15th after serving as interim president for more than a year. He was the University’s 6th president.
1941
The state legislature authorized a bond issue to construct a new gymnasium.
1941
Commencement ceremonies included celebrations for the 50th anniversary of the graduation of the University's first four-year class.
1942
The University’s war effort included the development of additional special summer session offerings.
1942
After no major capital improvements for 30 years, the University constructed a new engineering facility, later named the Stanley Palmer Engineering Building.
1943
The Army and Army Air Force training contingents arrived at the University.
1942
President Hartman died in office on August 27th.
1944
The University celebrated the inauguration of John O. Mosely as its 7th president on October 12th.
1946
The University canceled a football game at Mississippi State when its state athletic director requested that Nevada play without African-American players.
1948
The Twentieth Century Fox filmed Apartment for Peggy on campus, one of several movies shot on University grounds during the 1940s.
1949
Gilbert E. Parker became acting president on July 1st after the resignation of John Mosely.
1951
On June 10th and 11th, the University celebrated the inauguration of Malcolm A. Love as its 8th president.
1952
Stella Mason Parson became the first African American woman graduate, with a Bachelor of Arts in English.
1953
On June 8th, the University celebrated the inauguration of Minard W. Stout as the 9th president.
1954
The University established a Nevada Southern branch in Las Vegas with 269 students.
1956
The legislature funded a new building to support business education. The building was named for Silas E. Ross, a former regent who served for 25 years.
1957
Students began taking classes in the Ovis School of Nursing, which received funding from Arthur E. and Mae Zenke Orvis.
1958
Construction concluded on Jot Travis Student Union, which alumni helped to fund.
1959
The University established the Desert Research Institute.
1959
On April 19th, the University celebrated the inauguration of Charles J. Armstrong as the 10th president.
1960
The Winter Olympic Games selected the University as host university for the 1960 Games in Squaw Valley (now known as Olympic Valley).
1961
The University of Nevada Press began operation with Robert Laxalt as editor.
1962
Getchell Library, named after Nevada mining tycoon Noble H. Getchell, opened.
1963
The only planetarium in the shape of a hyperbolic paraboloid, the Fleischmann Planetarium and Science Center opened.
1963
The University's FM radio station, KUNR, began broadcasting on October 7th.
1964
The Oral History Program commenced.
1964
Roger Barron Morrison received the first doctoral degree from the University, a Ph.D. in Geology.
1965
Kenneth J. Carpenter founded Black Rock Press.
1965
University enrollment exceeded 5,000.
1966
On February 11, N. Edd Miller began his tenure first as chancellor, then as the 11th president of the University.
1966
The University finished construction on the new Mackay Stadium in the northern end of campus.
1967
The Upward Bound program started offering support and services to low-income students at the University, one of the first in the nation.
1968
Black students on campus founded the Black Students' Union, an organization dedicated to serving Black students in the University community, local high school students, and minorities in the area.
1968
The American Indian Organization launched a campus chapter.
1968
Human Relations Action Council formed, comprising a group of faculty and students calling for "immediate and drastic action" on the part of the University regarding "the social problems created by racism and apathy."
1969
The Regents officially named the Reno campus the University of Nevada, Reno while changing the name of the southern campus to the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
1969
The first African-American faculty member, Ben Hazard, began teaching in the Art Department.
1969
Nevada and UNLV played their first football game on November 22nd. Nevada won, 30-28.
1970
Students and faculty staged the Governor's Day anti-war protest on campus, ultimately resulting in the dismissal of English professor Paul Adamian.
1971
Howard Hughes made the first payment on a $4 million 20-year gift in support of the new two-year School of Medical Sciences in Reno.
1972
Comprising faculty, staff, and students, the Commission on the Status of Women organized and began its ongoing advocacy work.
1974
Max C. Milam begins serving as president of the University of Nevada, Reno on October 12th. Milam was the University’s 12th president.
1974
The University celebrated its 100th birthday in Reno with a centennial convocation.
1978
The 13th to hold the office, Joseph N. Crowley became president on February 24th, beginning the longest presidential tenure at the University.
1979
Morrill Hall reopened in a rededication ceremony after years of major renovations.