The Compact of 1806 was intended to settle a complicated dispute about public lands between the United States government, Tennessee, and North Carolina. Under the agreement Tennessee set aside two hundred thousand acres of “public land,” the sale of which would benefit academies and colleges. The Tennessee General Assembly divided the land, with the proceeds … Continued

When William Everett Derryberry earned the BA in 1928, he was the first UT student to graduate with a perfect 4.0 average. The second student to graduate with perfect grades was David Stuart Fonde (BS in electrical engineering, 1952); and the third student was Kenneth Ralph Piety (BS in nuclear engineering, 1970).

UT’s first on-campus Stop-Smoking Clinic was held February 28–March 3, 1975, in the Health, Physical Education, and Recreation (HPER) Building. The UT Health and Safety Department, the East Tennessee Heart Association, and the Seventh Day Adventist Church sponsored the clinic. It was free.

Robert Earl Ogle, 21-year-old, part-time agriculture student, and son of Otha Ogle, foreman at the university farm, was the first person to volunteer under the Selective Service Act. He was accepted for one year’s service in the army in December 1940. He had four hours’ notice prior to leaving for Fort Oglethorpe. He replaced former … Continued

An “incidentals fee” of $2.50 per session was imposed in 1869–70, although the fee was not limited to provision of student activities. The board of trustees first passed imposing a student activities fee in 1928 to take effect for fall 1929.

The first recorded outside talent playing at the university during a regular session was the Ben Greet Players of London, England, who gave a Shakespearian Spring Festival on May 10 and 11, 1906.

In 1964 the men’s track team won its first SEC outdoor track title and also won the cross-country and indoor track titles. UT was the first institution in SEC history to hold the three titles simultaneously.

On August 25, 1973, the Atlanta Falcons played the Cleveland Browns in a preseason exhibition game in Neyland Stadium. Tickets were $7.

Aaron Ausmus outdistanced fellow SEC competitors from Louisiana State University and South Carolina to win the NCAA national indoor shot put title with a throw of 62-4.5 in 1997.

The land-grant endowment from the 1862 Morrill Act was awarded to the university in January 1869. The following December, Professor Hunter Nicholson was named the first professor of agriculture.