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This Month in NC State History (November) Timeline

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  1. 1890
  2. 1900
  3. 1925
  4. 1950
  5. 1975
  6. 2000
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  1. 11/1895 Red and white chosen A majority of students chose red and white as colors for the sports teams. The colors changed a couple different times during the early years of the college. The faculty agreed to the adoption of red and white and stated that they could not be changed again without a vote of two-thirds of the student body. The colors have remained the same ever since.
  2. 11/10/1921 Memorial Bell Tower cornerstone laid The cornerstone is laid for the Memorial Bell Tower, a monument to honor State College alumni who had been killed during World War I.
  3. 11/13/1924 Apple Judging Team The State College Apple Judging Team wins third place at the Intercollegiate Apple Judging Contest in Atlantic City, NJ.
  4. 11/21/1925 Agriculture Club social event The Agriculture Club of State College hosts a "Barn-warming" for visiting farmers at Thompson Gym.
  5. 11/19/1927 Emergency airplane landing An aviator was forced to make an emergency landing in the field just west of Thompson Gymnasium, after being unable to locate the airport. State college offered him the use of the woodshop to make repairs to his airplane.
  6. 11/11/1929 Freshman Cap vote Nearly 1,000 students—about half the student body—vote on the freshman cap referendum. By 15 votes, they elect to keep the caps. Freshmen accept the decision and continue to wear the caps throughout the spring semester, though the close vote leads the Student Council and the NC State Board of Trustees to consider requiring the caps to be worn just for the fall semester instead of the full academic year.
  7. 11/14/1929 Freshman Cap advice Comiskey (a student) has worn a dress for 13 days when more than 400 freshmen meet and decide to stand in unity with him and burn their freshman caps. Henry Love, Class of 1930 and Vice President of the Student Council, addresses the freshmen, telling them that “burning the caps now would only necessitate the buying of new ones, or trouble.” He advises them to try to get rid of the caps through a student body referendum.
  8. 11/21/1929 Freshman Cap referendum Freshmen vote 582 to 18 to seek a referendum regarding the required wearing of freshman caps on campus.
  9. 11/27/1934 Power outage After a power outage causes lights in the 1911 Dormitory to go off, students build a fire in front of the building to provide light inside. The Raleigh Fire Department sends two trucks to extinguish the blaze, with organized student cheering sections encouraging the firemen while they work.
  10. 11/11/1938 Chinese delegates visit Chinese delegates address State College students and Raleigh citizens in an event sponsored by the YMCA and YWCA.
  11. 11/17/1939 First annual High School Day The first annual High School Day brings approximately 6,000 seniors to visit NC State's campus; many stay to attend the State-Duquesne football game, as well.
  12. 11/1940 First female full professor and department head Gertrude Cox is hired as Professor of Statistics and head of the Department of Experimental Statistics, becoming the first woman at State College to occupy either rank.
  13. 11/7/1941 NC State beats UNC in football for the first time in 14 seasons
  14. 11/1/1946 Early female band member Lois Madden (on drums) becomes one of the first women to ever join the NC State marching band.
  15. 11/14/1947 Pep rally plans A pyrotechnic display consisting of sparklers spelling out "Beat Wake Forest" is planned for the day's pep rally.
  16. 11/11/1949 Dedication of the Memorial Bell Tower The Memorial Bell Tower is dedicated, with former Governor R. Gregg Cherry present at the ceremony.
  17. 11/14/1952 Dean resigns Dr. James H. Hilton resigns his position as the Dean of the School of Agriculture.
  18. 11/25/1957 First ACC football title The State College football team defeats the University of South Carolina to win their first Atlantic Coast Conference title.
  19. 11/16/1960 Lawrence Ferlinghetti visits Lawrence Ferlinghetti, a noted poet associated with the Beat Generation, gives a lecture at the College Union.
  20. 11/4/1961 Harrelson Hall (named for former chancellor John William Harrelson) opens Harrelson Hall, NC State's newest classroom building, opens to the public for the first time as part of the School of Agriculture's Open House. The building seats 3,429 people.
  21. 11/6/1963 Burlington Labs maintenance Sixty gallons of anti-freeze are put in the cooling tower for the reactor in Burlington Laboratory, added to keep the 250 gallons of water in the tower from freezing during the winter.
  22. 11/2/1964 Women in science and engineering Two female engineering students from NC State attend a conference at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology that discusses the opportunities and difficulties facing women in the fields of science and engineering.
  23. 11/10/1964 Compulsory ROTC service abolished The Faculty Senate votes to abolish compulsory ROTC. Prior to this date, all male students were required to take military training.
  24. 11/10/1965 Rolling Stones perform The Rolling Stones perform at Reynolds Coliseum. The Stones are joined by Patti LaBelle for the show.
  25. 11/13/1965 Final game at Riddick Stadium The final football game is played in Riddick Stadium. Members of the football team mob Harold Deters after he kicks the winning field goal against Florida State, resulting in a final score of 3-0.
  26. 11/15/1967 Brigade of Guards perform Two units of Queen Elizabeth II's Brigade of Guards (the Band of the Welsh Guards and the pipes, drums, and dancers of the Scots Guards) join forces for a "pageant" of music, marching, and dancing at Reynolds Coliseum.
  27. 11/9/1968 Folksinger Bob Godfrey performs
  28. 11/7/1969 5th Dimension performance The 5th Dimension perform at Reynolds Coliseum.
  29. 11/10/1969 Homecoming Queen candidates David Mark Brown becomes one of 22 semi-finalists competing for the position of Homecoming Queen. Sponsored by Kappa Alpha Fraternity, Brown ran to promote higher campus interest in Homecoming.
  30. 11/12/1969 Referendum policy Student Government passes a bill stating that students may place referendums on Student Senate election ballots by collecting signatures of at least 5% of the student body in favor of the referendum.
  31. 11/29/1971 Lou Holtz hired Lou Holtz is hired as the new head football coach, replacing Al Michaels.
  32. 11/2/1973 Joint statement Student body presidents from NC State, Duke, UNC-Chapel Hill and UNC-Greensboro publish a joint statement urging the impeachment of President Nixon, complete with 12 reasons why the proceedings should begin.
  33. 11/20/1974 George Faison Universal Dance Experience visits Stewart Theatre hosts the George Faison Universal Dance Experience.
  34. 11/29/1980 Jim Valvano's debut NC State beats UNC-Wilmington, 83-59, in Jim Valvano's debut as head Men's Basketball coach.
  35. 11/19/1999 First game at the RBC Center The NC State Men's Basketball team beats Georgia, 67-63, in their first game at the RBC Center.