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About Founding Day

Founding Day was started in 1938 by Miss Grace Whitridge. It was both to commemorate the day Rev. Dr. Edward Duffield Neill obtained the charter for Macalester from the Minnesota Legislature on March 5, 1874, and to celebrate the 89th birthday of James Wallace, who served as college president for 12 years.

The tradition of celebrating Founding Day continued through the early 1970s and was revived again in March 2004. In the early days, the event included a lecture in the gymnasium and birthday cake. The cake would be ceremoniously carried into the gymnasium on a special litter borne by four men dressed in kilts as bagpipers led the procession.

1938

  • 1st year held
  • Celebrated anniversary of founding on March 5, 1874, and the 89th birthday of James Wallace
    • The celebration was held on March 12
  • The founding committee was comprised of Grace B. Whitridge (chairman), Dr. O. T. Walter, C.A. Jensen, John P. Hall, and Helen Stratte
  • Part of the celebration included a radio broadcast that would reach Macalester students and Alumni from around the world. The broadcast hosted Grace Whitridge, James Wallace, the Glee Club, John Hall, and trustee Frank Paskewitz

1939

  • The broadcast across the world was repeated
  • This year’s cake was 55 pounds!
  • The suggestion to begin a Student Loan Fund was given on the 1939 Founders Day and approved one month later (MW 5/18/1939 pg1)

1940

  • The 1940 Founding Day program published pictures of Founders Day celebrations across the country

1943

  • No dinner with the Founding Day celebration because of food and gasoline rations, but they still had the cake. (Dinner was reinstated in 1946)

1948

  • 31 Macalester clans around the world had celebrations
  • Honored 12 faculty members who had been working at Mac for 20+ years

1953

  • Historical exhibit sponsored by First National Bank of St. Paul, the Minnesota Historical Society, and the Great Northern Railway Co of early Minnesota added to the celebration

’60s–’90s

  • There was a gap in Founding Day celebrations during this time period. More research is to be to be done to know exactly when it stopped and if there were other celebrations happening during this time.

2004

  • A semi-formal gala was held for Brian Rosenberg’s inauguration, and 2004 marked the college’s 130th birthday.
  • The event was enjoyed so much that Founding Day was brought back.

2009

  • Catharine Deaver Lealtad, the first African American woman to graduate from Macalester, becomes featured in the Founding Faces on postcards and invitations

2010

  • The Founding Day celebration was 1970s themed, featuring live music by Boogie Wonderland
  • The Founding Faces now include both Catharine Deaver Lealtad and Esther Suzuki

2011

  • Pushball, a classic game from the 1800’s where two competing sides push a large ball, was re-introduced for the celebration
  • Students were invited to compete in a quiz bowl/trivia event versus a team of Brian Rosenberg, Adrienne Christiansen, Jane Rhodes, and Jayne Niemi. Bill Watkins hosted the event and acted as “Quizmaster”

2017

  • Introduction of the Founding Day Decathlon

2018

  • Kilts and Legs Project, a series of pictures featuring faculty members in Kilts from the waist down, was used as promotional material

2019

  • Founding Day 2019 marked the college’s 145th birthday

2020–Present

  • Founding Day will continue tradition with a variety of events to celebrate the college’s birthday

The history of Macalester is written with the story of men and women who sacrificed… Great commitment, and great acknowledgement of the need for occasional suffering in order to bring great ideas into reality. We are the beneficiaries of those who have preceded us.

Former Macalester President John B. Davis, Jr. in 1975