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USM Timeline

The University System of Maryland has been around since 1988 when it was created from the merger of University of Maryland (UM) and Board of Trustees of State Universities and Colleges (BTSUC). The following is a time line of important events in the history of USM.

The History of USM
1807		College of Medicine founded in Baltimore; rechartered in 1812 as the University of Maryland.
1840		Maryland General Assembly charters an independent Baltimore College of Dental Surgery, the first dental college in the world (predecessor of the Dental School, University of Maryland at Baltimore).
1856		Maryland General Assembly charters the Maryland Agricultural College at College Park, the country's third college of agriculture (predecessor of University of Maryland, College Park); achieves land-grant status in 1865.
1865		Baltimore Normal School founded as a training school for black teachers (predecessor of Bowie State University).
1866		Maryland State Normal School for teachers founded (predecessor of Towson University).
1886		Delaware Conference Academy founded (predecessor of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore); achieves land-grant status in 1890.
1888		Maryland Agricultural Experiment Station opens.
1898		State Normal School No. 2 at Frostburg founded as a teacher-training school (predecessor of Frostburg State University).
1900		Coppin State College founded as a training school for black elementary school teachers in Baltimore.
1914		Maryland Cooperative Extension Service established.
1920		Maryland General Assembly merges the professional schools in Baltimore with the Maryland State College of Agriculture at College Park to create the University of Maryland, College Park and the University of Maryland, Baltimore.
1925		Salisbury State College (predecessor of Salisbury University) founded as a two-year teacher-training school.
1925		Chesapeake Biological Laboratory, founding component of the UMCenter for Environmental Science, established.
1925		University of Baltimore founded.
1949		College of Special and Continuation Studies established (becomes University of Maryland University College in 1959).
1963		Maryland General Assembly creates the Board of Trustees of the State Colleges to assume control of five former state teachers colleges: Bowie State, Coppin State, Frostburg State, Salisbury State, and Towson State.
1966		University of Maryland, Baltimore County founded.
1970		Maryland General Assembly establishes a five-campus University of Maryland network comprising University of Maryland at Baltimore, University of Maryland Baltimore County, University of Maryland, College Park, University of Maryland Eastern Shore, and University of Maryland University College.
1975		University of Baltimore, a private institution, joins the Board of Trustees of the State Colleges System as an upper-division institution.
1976		Maryland General Assembly changes the name of the Board of Trustees of the State Colleges System to the State University and College System of Maryland.
1977		University of Maryland Sea Grant Program established; designated a Sea Grant College in 1982.
1985		University of Maryland Biotechnology Institute established.
1988		University of Maryland System created from the merger of the five University of Maryland institutions and the six members of the State University and College System of Maryland. John S. Toll appointed first chancellor of the new system.
1990		Donald N. Langenberg appointed as second chancellor of the system.
1997		University of Maryland System becomes University System of Maryland.
1999		Legislation provides USM institutions greater autonomy, particularly in the creation of new programs, and grants the USM the status of a public corporation.
2000		Opening of the Universities at Shady Grove, USM's first regional center.
2002		William E. Kirwan appointed third chancellor of the system.
2005		Opening of the University System of Maryland at Hagerstown, USM's second regional center.
2008		USM celebrates its 20th anniversary.