1927

Enthusiasm for football, baseball and basketball are high at Wichita Falls Junior College in its early years, but it is tennis and track that triumph with tennis bringing home the first state championship in 1927. In 1930 due to the Depression, all sports are disbanded until the basketball team reappears in 1937 under athletic director D.L. Ligon. Football returned in 1944.

1934

Hardin Trust of $1 million is established, and W.B. Hamilton and N.H. Martin donate 40 acres of land located “at the end of a dusty, rural road, grandly called Taft Street” for a campus site.

1950

After 15 years of bearing the Hardin name and with remarkable growth, the university grows discontent with the Hardin name because of confusion with Hardin-Simmons, Mary Hardin-Baylor and even Harding University in Arkansas. On January 17, 1950, the board approves a new name: Midwestern University.

1951

Clark Student Center is constructed. In 1961, the University names the center in memory of C.H. Clark.

1952

President James B. Boren is instrumental in obtaining 35 bronze bells for the Hardin Tower. The bells were cast in Aarle-Rixtell, Holland, by a foundry operating since 1660. Noted carillonneur Dr. Frederick Marriott from Chicago University gives the initial concert ending with Midwestern’s new alma mater.

1954

Midwestern University accepts its first African American students, almost four years after Willie Faye Battle was accepted to the university and then turned away after appearing in person on campus.

“I am very proud of Midwestern University because of the fact that I know my sister had a great point in getting Midwestern to be what it is today by applying.”

- O'Linda Battle Barnett, Administrators honor first African American students, - The Wichitan 2018

1959

The first charters of national social fraternities and sororities are installed.

1961

Midwestern University becomes part of the Texas Colleges and Universities System and the junior college division is dissolved.

1963

Construction of Moffett Library begins. The library is dedicated and named for state Sen. George (Cotton) Moffett of Chillicothe on May 29, 1964. Also in 1964, the library becomes a depository for U.S. government publications.

1965

Planning for the physical education building is featured in the Wichita Falls Times:

“Tentative plans for a new physical education facility at Midwestern were approved by the university’s board of regents Thursday.”

1966

Bolin Science Hall is dedicated.

1967

The Wichita Falls Museum and Art Center opens. Now named the Wichita Falls Museum of Art at MSU Texas, the museum was acquired by the university in 2005.

“Founded in the mid-1960s by visionary members of the community and spearheaded by the Junior Service League during a decade of political and social change and uncertainty, the Wichita Falls Museum and Art Center opened its doors on April 1, 1967.” - WFMA website

1974

On December 4, after a tremendous community undertaking involving hundreds of volunteers, the master switch is thrown and the MSU-Burns Fantasy of Lights becomes a reality on the Hardin Administration Building lawn.

1975

The university is renamed Midwestern State University by action of the Texas Legislature.

1977

On January 29, Texas Gov. Dolph Briscoe helps to dedicate the $5.5 million Fine Arts building, known today as the Fain Fine Arts Center.

1984

The auditorium located north of Hardin Building was named Akin Auditorium in honor of J.W. and Nita Akin.

1988

After a 32-year absence, non-scholarship football is reinstated.

1992

Bolin Fountain, donated by Aurora and Phil Bolin, is constructed in the Quadrangle.

1995

MSU Athletics begins its move to the NCAA Division II.

1996

Dr. Walter W. Dalquest and his wife Rose donate two sections of land in the Texas Big Bend region for the establishment of a desert research site. Today, the site is known as the Dalquest Desert Research Station.

1997

On March 7, the university breaks ground for J.S. Bridwell Hall. The facility was first home to the Gunn College of Health Sciences & Human Services. In fall 2020, Bridwell Hall became home to the West College of Education.

1997

The Sunwatcher statue is donated by the Ex-Students Association in commemoration of the 75th anniversary in 1997. The statue is located near the Clark Student Center in Sunwatcher Plaza.

1998

The Dallas Cowboys hold the first of four summer training camps through 2001 on the MSU campus.

2000

The renovation project to join Bea Wood and O’Donohoe halls is completed creating a central hub for liberal arts programs on campus. Bea Wood and O’Donohoe were originally used as dormitories until the facilities were converted to classrooms in the early 1970s. Today, the joint facility houses the Prothro-Yeager College of Humanities & Social Sciences.

2000

Hotter’N Hell Hundred presents the cycling statue by local artist Jack Stevens as a tribute to the MSU Cycling Team.

2004

Work begins on the 88,000-square-foot facility to house the Dillard College of Business Administration. The new facility opened in Fall 2006.

2006

The university mascot transitions from Indians to Mustangs.

2006

Midwestern State University becomes the only university in Texas to join the Council of Public Liberal Arts Colleges (COPLAC).

2009

The new Bruce & Graciela Redwine Student Wellness Center, including a new Vinson Health Center, opens on south campus near Sikes Lake. Remodel of the Fowler Building into the McCoy Engineering Hall is completed, as is the completion of the Sundance Court, a new, 276-bed, apartment-style residence hall.

2010

Effective January 1, MSU becomes the first Texas public university to establish a tobacco-free campus.

2012

The Small Business Development Center celebrates its 25th anniversary at MSU. The $17 million renovation of D.L. Ligon Coliseum is completed.

2015

Caribfest, the annual Caribbean cultural festival, celebrates its 20th anniversary.

2015

Dr. Suzanne Shipley is named the 11th president of Midwestern State University, marking the first female president in the university’s history.

2016

In August, Legacy Hall opens, serving as the anchor for residential learning on campus. The facility is designed to attract and retain today’s college student and maximize opportunities for meaningful interactions and student learning.

2016

MSU Texas launches its first comprehensive campaign with the goal to raise $50 million leading to its centennial celebration in 2022. At the close of the 2021 calendar year, the Boundless Opportunities campaign has secured more than $88 million in new gifts and commitments with a year left.

2017

The Texas Historical Commission recognized the desegregation of Midwestern University by awarding an official Texas Historical Marker that was dedicated in February. The marker is located near the Ferguson Building.

The MSU Texas brand is established to introduce the university to a larger audience in a new and dynamic way while still recognizable to alumni and friends.

2018

MSU Texas opens the Flower Mound Student Learning Center to establish a pathway to attract adult learners and community college students eager to complete a bachelor’s degree.

2019

Centennial Hall, a state-of-the-art health sciences facility, opens its doors to students on August 26. The open architecture of the facility displays labs to promote collaborative learning between students and disciplines.

2021

West College of Education launches the university’s first doctoral program in educational leadership.

MSU Texas becomes the fifth member institution to join the Texas Tech University System.