This Day in New Mexico History - January 21

This day in New Mexico History: January 21, 1890, This was the very first day of classes for the New Mexico College of Agriculture and Mechanical Arts in Las Cruces. In 1960 the name changed to NMSU. First president was Hiram Hadley. There is a strange part to this story.

March 10, 1890 the college held its formal opening ceremonies. Graduation in May 1900 saw four students and the ten year celebration. The 25th celebration was May 1915 honoring Hiram Hadley. May 1930 saw the 40th anniversary celebration. Then the 50th celebration was held in 1939. The celebration was a year early because the University of New Mexico, which actually held its first classes in June 1892 decided to amend their history to claim starting when the legislative authorization was passed by the Rodey Bill of 1889 which authorized what is now UNM, NMSU, The school of Mines in Socorro, and some other institutions. So for both UNM and NMSU the start became 1889.

Then in 1962, according to legend, UNM with new coach Bob King beat NMSU in basketball and the UNM players “waggled” their fingers at NMSU fans which caused then president Roger Corbett to order the NMSU history department to, “Get us a year ahead of UNM.” So NMSU quietly started claiming 1888. This came to light in 1988 when I (Michael Swickard) was writing a history of the NMSU Centennial celebration. I pointed it out to then NMSU president Jim Halligan who asked me, “The Centennial Celebration phone is 646-1988, the PO Box is 1988, what does that tell you?” I replied, “That we are Aggies.” I stick by that statement.
Finding no one willing to correct the history I wrote then that if NMSU goes back two years every century, by the year 8,588, NMSU will say they started in 1776.

This Day in New Mexico History - January 21