Utah State University can trace its beginning to the Morrill Land-Grant Colleges Act, an 1862 law designed "to establish at least one college in each state upon a sure and perpetual foundation, accessible to all, but especially to the sons of toil ..."
The university was founded in 1888, but it wasn't until 1890 that Vendla Berntson enrolled as the first student in what was then the Utah Agricultural College.
In the 120 years since, the university has grown into one of Utah's major institutions of higher learning, with more than 25,000 undergraduate and graduate students and 850 faculty members.
The university now offers more than 170 majors and 130 research-related classes, and USU's Cooperative Extension Service has a statewide impact.
Over the years, Deseret News photographers have captured many of the seminal moments in USU's history, and photo researcher Ron Fox has collected many of these photos.
Utah was still a territory when its Legislature determined that a land-grant university would strengthen its new bid for statehood. Deciding where to put the new school created some controversy.
According to historian Joel Ricks, "Provo had received the insane asylum, Salt Lake City had the university and Capitol, and the majority of the Legislature felt that the new institutions should be given to Weber and Cache counties."
Logan residents mounted a determined and successful lobbying effort, and the new university was located in Logan.
An ad in the Aug. 31, 1894, Deseret News hoping to entice Utah parents to send their children to Logan for a higher education explained the benefits of attending the Agricultural College:
"It is situated in an ideal college town, free from the temptations and allurements of large cities and without the dullness usual to smaller towns. It asks of the people none of their money but only that their sons and daughters sufficiently advanced to enter upon its courses, be induced to share in its benefits." Tuition, including board, room, clothing, books and incidentals, was not to exceed $150.
The school grew quickly. A story in the Aug. 22, 1924, Deseret News reporting on new living quarters for female students, said:
"A well-equipped and comfortably furnished dormitory for girls will be opened at the Utah Agricultural College when the fall quarter begins on Monday, Sept. 29. Accommodations for 50 girls have been provided. The dean of women will live in the dormitory and exercise direct supervision over the conduct, health and home life of the girls."
One of the university's constants has been Old Main, the oldest college building in Utah.
According to an article in the Dec. 20, 1983, Deseret News by staff writer Glen Warchol, "At one time the winged building housed everything from the president's office upstairs to the dairy in the basement. In a fit of preparedness, the Military Science and Tactics Department set up a rifle range in the dining hall in 1914. And in 1919, during the influenza epidemic, the north end of the basement was turned into a military hospital."
In 1983, the north wing was damaged in a fire caused by an exploding fluorescent light ballast. The Utah Legislature dedicated $2 million for the 1985 reconstruction of the building.
Over the years, the university has gone by many names, including Agricultural College of Utah, Utah Agriculture College, Utah State Agriculture College, and finally in 1957, Utah State University.
Even before the final name change, an editorial in the Nov. 4, 1950, Deseret News acknowledged the impact of the university:
"The truth is that this institution has achieved full university status, and its researches in the agricultural field have contributed greatly to the improvement of crops and livestock in the state and in the nation."
e-mail: mhaddock@desnews.com