IT’S PROBABLY NOT NEWS that a 173-year-old institution like the University of Minnesota holds many, many stories. Literally hundreds of thousands of people have walked through its buildings in past years, and each one has contributed to its history.

According to the official timeline, the U of M traces its inception back to 1851, well before Minnesota became a state. That was when the charter for the University was drawn up by the Minnesota Territorial Legislature and Governor Alexander Ramsey. The figurative bricks were laid for the U of M seven years before Minnesota achieved statehood because the region’s founding fathers recognized a university was key to giving the region—and its children—a path to higher education.

After closing temporarily during the Civil War, by 1868 the University was again open. By 1873, Warren Clark Eustis and Henry Martyn Williamson became the first two official graduates. 

By 1888, the U of M awarded its first doctoral degree, also one of the nation’s first. In 1898, the school claimed fame for being the original home to cheerleading when a man named John E. Campbell organized cheers during a football game against Northwestern.

And in 1904, a group of roughly 300 alumni met to create the University of Minnesota Alumni Association. They recognized that being alumni made them members of a family who call the U of M their alma mater, and they wanted an official organization to recognize that fact.

Over the past year, the Alumni Association has been celebrating its 120th anniversary. More importantly, it has been celebrating the generations of alumni who’ve scrambled through these halls, hunched over multiple desks, and furiously scribbled notes as a teacher shared knowledge. The Alumni Association still exists today to support, inform, and maintain the ties alumni formed with the University of Minnesota.

That’s why this issue ofMinnesota Alumni (founded in 1901, by the way), is special. We’re celebrating and highlighting some of the many multigenerational alumni who’ve made attending the U of M a family tradition. You’ll find this issue packed with their recollections, which underscore how important the U of M remains to Minnesota, and to those who attend.

And another piece of important U of M history is currently unfolding as Rebecca Cunningham, M.D., assumes her place as the 18th president of the University. Her first official day on the job was July 1, and her inauguration will take place later this month on September 18.

On behalf of all the alumni of the U of M, and all the students beginning their journey toward future alumni status, we welcome her to the University.

We’re excited about the future.

Kelly O’Hara Dyer can be reached at ohara119@umn.edu.

If you liked this story, Minnesota Alumni magazine publishes four times a year highlighting U of M alumni and University activities. Early access to stories and a print subscription are benefits of being an Alumni Association member. Join here to receive a printed copy at home.