Historical State, 125, NC State University, one hundred twenty-five years of shaping the future

NC State During World War II Timeline

1. 1890
2. 1900
3. 1925
4. 1950
5. 1975
6. 2000

1. 1941 Diesel Program One of the most significant contributions to the war effort is the Diesel Program, developed by the Mechanical Engineering Department. The program trains more than 1,500 members of the Navy.
2. 1942 The library during World War II All male library staff members leave for military service during World War II, with Director Harlan Brown taking a leave of absence until 1946. Reference librarian Reba Clevenger becomes the acting college librarian during this time.
3. 1/30/1942 Early graduation approved The faculty approves a plan to allow seniors who are taking jobs in essential industries or joining the military to graduate early.
4. 4/17/1942 Special summer courses The faculty approve a plan to hold fall engineering classes in the summer as part of a nationwide war effort to accelerate graduation at technical schools for the benefit of the war effort.
5. 4/24/1942 Higher female enrollment sought Increased enrollment by women needed in engineering courses; urgent appeals are made as the male students leave to fight in the war.
6. 4/24/1942 Blood drive Students hold a blood drive to support the war effort.
7. 10/7/1942 Scrap metal drive Students gather over 150,000 pounds of scrap metal in 3 hours for the war effort; a banner over the collection pile reads "To Hitler & Co. from NC State College."
8. 2/12/1943 Defense classes Plans are announced for up to 2,000 military trainees to enroll at State College to take specialized defense classes through the United States War Department; the college will operate as two separate units: one for the military and one civilians.
9. 3/8/1943 Harrelson reports for military service Col. John Harrelson, Dean of Administration, reports for active Army duty; he becomes the 56th faculty member at State College to enter active service and the first head of a major college in the South to be called for permanent active duty.
10. 4/9/1943 Enrollment decline Enrollment hits the lowest mark in 20 years, due to the number of students leaving to join the military.
11. 1944 Diesel Building built During World War II, State College formed a partnership with the U.S. Navy to train naval officers in diesel engineering. The Diesel Building was constructed to house this project. It was designed by Ross Edward Shumaker and became part of Broughton Hall in 1951.
12. 2/25/1944 Alumni in the Armed Services Over 5,000 NC State alumni reported to be serving in the Armed Services, six of whom have obtained the rank of General.
13. 1945 Women's enrollment increases Fifty-eight women are enrolled at NC State, many taking advantage of special scholarships to provide engineering training to women so they can work in industry during World War II.
14. 6/10/1945 Late release of Agromeck The 1945 Agromeck is printed and released late, due to wartime restrictions.
15. 8/1946 Trailwood founded More than 75 trailers (forming what was known as the "City of Trailers" or "Trailwood") were constructed so that married WWII veterans and their families could attend NC State on the GI Bill. In 1949, Trailwood was relocated, and Williams Hall was built in its place.
16. 9/28/1946 Marching band returns A football game against Duke marks the first post-war appearance of the marching band.
17. 1947 Vetville Vetville opens as another location to house married veterans attending NC State after World War II. Later, Korean War veterans lived there. At the end of the 1950s, Bragaw Dormitory was built on the former Vetville site.