{"id":13770,"date":"2026-06-02T09:41:10","date_gmt":"2026-06-02T13:41:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/library\/?p=13770"},"modified":"2026-06-03T11:45:42","modified_gmt":"2026-06-03T15:45:42","slug":"13770","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/library\/2026\/06\/02\/13770\/","title":{"rendered":"The History of Founder’s Week"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Founder’s Week is a long-standing tradition that connects the university community with its origins. First known as Founder’s Day, the purpose of the occasion is to commemorate the institution’s first day on September 15, 1886. On that date, which\u00a0a\u00a0local newspaper reported\u00a0marked\u00a0“an epoch in the educational history, not only of Chattanooga, but of the surrounding country,” Chattanooga University (as the school was named at the time), held its opening exercises inside of the original campus building\u00a0on McCallie Avenue\u00a0known as Old Main. Attendees included the 118-member student body, the faculty, and others affiliated with the university.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The original university structure, Old Main. Opening exercises for Chattanooga University (a former name for UTC), were held in the chapel of this building in September 1886.  
 
Old Main exterior view, undated. UA-00-03-01-05-001. Courtesy of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Special Collections. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In 1950, many of the individuals involved in establishing the university in 1886 were memorialized on campus in a building name change. The structure known today as Founders Hall was completed 1916 and was called the Administration Building until 1950, when the Board of Trustees voted on a new name, recommended by then president David A. Lockmiller. Shortly afterwards, a plaque listing 36 of these early leaders, including university presidents, trustees, faculty, and benefactors was installed in the eastern entrance.<\/p>\n\n\n

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University of Chattanooga Board of Trustees meeting minutes, June 5, 1950<\/a>. Courtesy of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Special Collections.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Since the 1950s, the observation of Founder\u2019s Day has varied in name and consistency but has always been recognized as an opportunity to celebrate the university and those who are a part of it. A speech from the early 1960s explains, \u201cFounder\u2019s Day could be thought of as the University\u2019s birthday party, a ceremony celebrating the official opening of the institution. It could also be thought of as a day set aside to recognize the founding fathers of the University.\u201d Elsewhere, the purpose of Founder\u2019s Day is given as a time \u201cto recognize those who have labored to make the university what it is today.\u201d In 1999, University Relations news coordinator Barbara Kennedy told the University Echo<\/em><\/a> that the objective of Founder\u2019s Day was \u201cto bring everyone together \u2013 faculty, students, the administration, staff, alumni, and friends of the university\u2026to celebrate our common purposes and renew our sense of community.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n

\n
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“Why Founders’ Day, Anyway?”, circa 1961, University of Chattanooga founding documents, administrative records, and other materials, UA-00-01-08. Courtesy of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Special Collections.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Beginning in the\u00a0mid-2010s, Founder\u2019s Day evolved into Founder\u2019s Week, a multi-day affair with programming celebrating the university and its engagement with the larger Chattanooga community. Recurring events from past years include university participation in the United Way of Greater Chattanooga’s Day of Caring, a campus-wide\u00a0food drive for\u00a0Scrappy’s\u00a0Cupboard, the Annual Service Awards Luncheon, and the Chancellor\u2019s State of the University address.\u00a0With such activities, Founder\u2019s Week connects the university to its longstanding mission of achieving excellence and engaging with the surrounding metropolitan community.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n

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Founders Hall eastern entrance plaque, 2021.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Founder’s Week is a long-standing tradition that connects the university community with its origins. First known as Founder’s Day, the purpose of the occasion is to commemorate the institution’s first day on September 15, 1886. On that date, which\u00a0a\u00a0local newspaper reported\u00a0marked\u00a0“an epoch in the educational history, not only of Chattanooga, but of the surrounding country,”… <\/p>\n

Continue Reading <\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":954,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4922],"tags":[320,10702,10703],"class_list":{"0":"post-13770","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-special-collections","7":"tag-founders-day","8":"tag-university-archives","9":"tag-university-of-tennessee-at-chattanooga-history","10":"entry","11":"has-post-thumbnail"},"yoast_head":"\nThe History of Founder's Week - UTC Library<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/library\/2026\/06\/02\/13770\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The History of Founder's Week - UTC Library\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Founder’s Week is a long-standing tradition that connects the university community with its origins. 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