1470

CNR
Angela Merici, foundress of the Ursulines is born in Desenzano, Italy.

1470

In the world
Thomas Malory completes the Morte D’arthur.

1471

Henry VI of England is murdered; Edward IV is restored to the throne.

1473

The building of the Sistine Chapel begins in Rome.

1475

The English under Edward IV invade France.

1524

CNR
Angela returns from a pilgrimage to the Holy Land on November 25.

In the world
Giovanni da Verrazano discovers New York Bay and the Hudson River.

1528

CNR
Francesco Sforza, Duke of Milan, seeks Angela’s wise counsel.

In the world
The building of the Chateau de Fontainebleau is begun in France.

1535

CNR
On November 25, the Company of St. Ursula is founded in Brescia, Italy when 28 young women sign the Book of the Company.

In the world
English humanist and statesman Thomas More is executed.

1537

CNR
Angela Merici is elected Mother General on May 18 by 63 young women members of her Company of St. Ursula.

In the world
Niccolo Tartaglia publishes his work on ballistics, The New Science.

1540

CNR
Angela Merici dies on January 27 in Brescia, Italy.

In the world
The Order of the Jesuits is inaugurated under Ignatius Loyola.

1597

CNR
A Rule of the Company of St. Ursula is published in Avignon, France. Foundations in France are many throughout the 17th & 18th centuries, though Ursulines continue to live in their own homes or in groups.

In the world
Spanish artist El Greco paints “The Agony in the Garden.”

1612

CNR
Ursulines of Paris become cloistered; young girls are permitted into the cloister to be educated.

In the world
Matthias succeeds his brother Rudolf II as Holy Roman Emperor.

1639

CNR
Mother Mary of the Incarnation (Marie Guyart Martin), O.S.U., an Ursuline widowed mother of a teenage son, arrives on August 1, in Quebec, Canada, bringing Ursuline education to the New World.

In the world
Charles I concedes to Scottish demands after the First Bishops’ War.

1652

CNR
Reglements, (a landmark in the history of education) is published in France; it is a description of the administration and methods of Ursuline education.

In the world
The English Navigation Acts (1651) lead to the first Anglo-Dutch War.

1727

CNR
On August 7, twelve Ursulines arrive in New Orleans from France, where they open a boarding school, a school for native American women and female slaves, and they administer and staff the military hospital for several years.

In the world
George II succeeds his father George I as king of Great Britain and Ireland.

1794

CNR
Twenty-three Ursulines are executed in France by revolutionary forces.

In the world
Robespierre’s execution ends the Reign of Terror in France, and the Thermidorian Reaction begins.

1807

CNR
On May 24, Angela Merici is canonized a saint.

In the world
The slave trade is outlawed throughout the British Empire.

1834

CNR
The Ursuline convent and school in Charlestown, Massachusetts on August 11 is burned by an anti-Catholic mob.

In the world
The Whig party is formed to oppose Andrew Jackson and the Democratic party.

1848

CNR
Ursulines from Oedenburg (Austria-Hungary) & Landshut (Bavaria) arrive in St. Louis, Missouri on September 5 to open schools for German-speaking children.

In the world
The first U.S. women’s rights assembly meets at the Seneca Falls Convention.

1855

CNR
Ursulines from Europe, via St. Louis, Missouri, arrive in East Morrisania, the Bronx, and open a day and boarding school for girls in a  neighborhood that is a mix of German and Irish Catholic immigrants.

In the world
Simeon Leland begins construction of his gothic revival country home, Castleview in New Rochelle. Walt Whitman publishes his first book of poetry, Leaves of Grass.

1856

CNR
CNR Foundress, Lucy Gill (Mother Irene) is born in Aughrim, County Galway, Ireland.

In the world
Victor Hugo writes Les Miserables during his exile from France.

1862

CNR
Elizabeth Philomena Gill (Mother M. Augustine) is born in Aughrim, County Galway, Ireland.

In the world
A Union fleet under David G. Farragut captures New Orleans.

1873

CNR
Rev. James Boyce, pastor of St. Teresa’s parish in lower Manhattan (and brother of Mother M. Agnes, OSU from Morrisania) invites Ursulines to the parish where they open an academy and staff the girls’ department of the parish school.

In the world
The Panic of 1873 leads to five years of economic depression in the United States.

1881

CNR
On August 21, the Ursuline Community of St. Teresa is incorporated at Henry Street in New York City.

In the world
President Garfield is assassinated by Charles J. Guiteau.

1883

CNR
St. Teresa’s Normal School opens to provide teacher education classes.

In the world
The Brooklyn Bridge is completed in New York.

1893

CNR
Mother Irene Gill is elected superior of St. Teresa’s Ursuline community.

In the world
Grover Cleveland is inaugurated as the 24th U.S. president.

1896

CNR
Mother Irene Gill moves to New Rochelle, and when she discovers that Leland Castle has been rented to another school, buys a house at 29 Locust Avenue to open the Ursuline Seminary.

In the world
Italian composer Giacomo Puccini writes the opera La Boheme.

1897

CNR
St. Teresa’s Academy at Henry Street moves to Park Avenue & 93rd Street and is renamed Ursuline Academy. In New Rochelle, Leland Castle is occupied by Ursulines and the Ursuline Seminary opens on September 1 with ten boarding and sixty day students.

In the world
Stanislavsky founds the Moscow Art Theater and begins the method acting technique.

1900

CNR
The Roman Union of the Order of St. Ursula is established on November 15, and the New Rochelle Ursulines join in 1901.

In the world
Psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud publishes The Interpretation of Dreams.

1904

CNR
On June 27, the College of St. Angela is granted a charter by the Regents of the State of New York, and on September 12, the first students of the new college begin classes.

In the world
The New York City subway is opened.

1905

CNR
Students publish first literary magazine, St. Angela’s Quarterly (later renamed Quarterly, succeeded in late 1960’s by Phoenix).

In the world
W.E.B. Du Bois forms the Niagara Movement to demand full civil rights for black Americans.

1906

CNR
On June 12, the student’s first dramatic performance, Tennyson’s Princess, is held. On August 28, ground is broken for “The Gymnasium,” a collegiate building with laboratories, classrooms, and a full gymnasium (renamed “Chidwick” in 1936 in honor of a CNR President).

In the world
The San Francisco earthquake kills 700.

1907

CNR
First Summer Session begins on July 9.

In the world
The first Ziegfeld Follies are staged in New York City.

1908

CNR
First Commencement is held on May 26, and nine graduates form the first Alumnae Association on May 28.

In the world
Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque co-found the cubism art moment.

1909

CNR
First May Day celebration held.

In the world
American writer Gertrude Stein publishes Three Lives.

1910

CNR
On March 7, the first Glee Club concert is held and the student government Advisory Board begins. On March 31, the College charter changes the name to The College of New Rochelle, and on September 27, one hundred students are enrolled on campus.

1910

In the world
British politician Winston Churchill is appointed first lord of the Admiralty.

1911

CNR
The Class of 1911 on May 27 issues the first Annales yearbook, which is brought to the residence halls by pony cart and singing students.

In the world
The first film studio is established at Hollywood in California.

1912

CNR
The class of 1912 designs the first class ring, and the New York State Board of Regents grants CNR the authority to grant MA and PhD degrees.

In the world
The liner Titanic sinks after colliding with an iceberg on her maiden voyage.

1915

CNR
The first formal investiture ceremony is held and freshmen are given cap & gown to be worn at all formal and religious ceremonies. This tradition continues until the early 1970’s.

In the world
Albert Einstein formulates his General Theory of Relativity.

1916

CNR
Commencement week ceremony of a Rose Chain (later Daisy) begins (later replaced by Hooding ceremony in early 1950’s). The Student Dramatic Club is renamed Props ‘n Paint, and a flu epidemic delays the College opening in September. 

In the world
The Easter Rising in Dublin is suppressed within a week by the British.

1917

CNR
In a “straw vote” for the U.S. Presidency, Woodrow Wilson is “elected” by the students.

In the world
The United States declares war on Germany.

1918

CNR
On January 3, the first President of CNR, Rev. Michael C. O’Farrell dies, and on May 21, the second President, Msgr. Joseph Mooney, is inaugurated. That June, the class of 1919 gives up their prom for the sake of their brothers and friends at war in France.

In the world
Women over 30 win the right to vote in Britain.

1919

CNR
Mother Irene Gill is named Vice President of CNR and Mother Ignatius Wallace named Dean. That same year, extension branches are opened on Staten Island and in the Bronx.

In the world
George Gershwin composes his first hit song Swanee.

1921

CNR
The construction of Brescia Hall begins, and CNR becomes a charter member of the Middle States Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools. On November 21, the first issue of the student newspaper, Tatler, is published.

In the world
American anarchists Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti are found guilty of murder.

1923

CNR
Holy Family Chapel is dedicated.

In the world
Irish poet William Butler Yeats wins the Nobel Prize for literature.

1924

CNR
1924: On January 14, the first issue of Alumnae News is published (It will be renamed Quarterly in 1976).

In the world
Adolf Hitler publishes his Nazi political tract Mein Kampf (My Battle).

1926

CNR
The Science Hall is built and dedicated, and Brescia Hall, designed by renowned architect, Talbot Hamlin, is completed. On August 14, lightning strikes and burns the rear north turret of Leland Castle. CNR becomes a member of the Association of American Colleges and Universities.

In the world
American artist Georgia O’Keeffe paints her flower portrait Black Iris.

1927

CNR
CNR’s third President, Msgr. John Chidwick (1927-1935) is inaugurated.

In the world
Charles Lindbergh flies solo nonstop from New York to Paris in 33.5 hours.

1928

CNR
Mary F. Higgins (SAS ’15 and CNR’s sole PhD graduate in 1918) is the first woman elected to CNR Board of Trustees.

In the world
1928: Amelia Earhart becomes the first woman to fly across the Atlantic.

1929

CNR
CNR celebrates its Silver Anniversary, and Adrian Iselin Jr. forgives the mortgage on the Castle in honor of Mother Irene Gill’s 50th anniversary of religious profession. Ernest Thorne Thompson founds CNR’s Art Department.

In the world
The Wall Street crash leads to a worldwide economic depression.

1932

CNR
On April 26, the Sports Building is dedicated.

In the world
Aldous Huxley publishes Brave New World.

1934

CNR
On November 26, the CNR Debate Club defeats Oxford University.

In the world
George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein found The School of American Ballet.

1935

CNR
On January 13, President Msgr. John P. Chidwick dies, and Msgr. Cornelius Crowley is inaugurated at the four President of CNR. An informal cafeteria “T” opens for commuters and resident students, the only place on campus where smoking is permitted. On June 2, CNR students participate in a campus-wide pageant honoring the 400th anniversary of the foundation of the Ursulines. On December 22, CNR Foundress, Mother Irene Gill, dies.

In the world
Italy invades Abyssinia (now Ethiopia).

1937

CNR
July1st: CNR President, Msgr. Cornelius F. Crowley dies. March 17th: CNR students march in the New York  St. Patrick’s Day parade for the first time. First daughter of an alumna graduates (Dorothy Anne McEvoy)

In the world
John Steinbeck publishes Of Mice and Men.

1938

CNR
On January 21, Mother Augustine Gill, dies. In February, Msgr. Francis W. Walsh is named CNR’s fifth President. Swim Meet—forerunner of popular Swimphony—is held on April 12. On November 17, Mother Irene Gill Memorial Library is dedicated and the alumnae donate a Memorial Window and furnish a Reading Room.

In the world
Jewish property is attacked in Germany in the Kristallnacht (night of broken glass).

1939

CNR
The first Alumnae College, attended by over 500 alumane, is held on campus, June 9-11. Mother Thomas Aquinas O’Reilly ’13 becomes Dean. CNR Day at the World’s Fair is held, and students entertain fair-goers and are permitted to stay until 10 pm when chartered buses return them to campus. 

In the world
President Roosevelt (prompted by Einstein) orders a U.S. effort to build an atomic bomb.

1940

CNR
The Congress of United Sates Ursulines is held on campus, resulting in an added emphasis on philosophy and theology in the College curriculum.

In the world
Winston Churchill becomes British prime minister after Chamberlain resigns.

1941

CNR
On October 10, the Child Study Center, a nursery school under the auspices of the Psychology Department, opens on campus with Mother Berenice Rice ’24 as Director. World War II bring many changes to campus that fall. Professors are drafted, students raise hundreds of thousands of dollars, and endure rationing and shortages. Hemlines go up to conserve cloth, and Mother Margaret Crowley becomes the College’s Fire Warden.

In the world
The Japanese bomb Pearl Harbor and America enters World War II.

1942

CNR
Mother Thomas Aquinas is elected to Board of Trustees and six other Ursulines replace men on the Board. Resident seniors are given privilege of 11 pm lights out, no talk allowed. 

In the world
Hitler proposes the Final Solution of the Jewish Question, and the Holocaust begins.

1943

CNR
A House of Studies for young Ursulines studying for a BA is opened in Merici Hall, now known as Chelsea. In January, wartime fuel shortage closes College for two weeks.

In the world
Singer Paul Robeson stars in the title role of the Broadway production of Othello.

1944

CNR
The first formal Junior Ring Ceremony is held on September 18.

In the world
Allied D-Day invasion forces land at Normandy in northern France.

1945

CNR
On August 10, CNR President Monsignor Francis Walsh writes to President Truman and denounces the use of the atomic bombing of Japan.

In the world
The United Nations is formed.

1949

CNR
Mother Augustine Gill Dining Hall is dedicated, and the Alumnae Annual Fund is begun.  

In the world
Arthur Miller’s play Death of a Salesman is produced.

1950

CNR
Mother Dorothea Dunkerley ’19 is elected the first Ursuline President of CNR. On April 27, the beloved and brilliant professor of Sociology & Economics and long-time Registrar Mother M. Xavier Fitzgerald dies. Mother Xavier is credited at having set CNR on the path of academic excellence.

In the world
Cartoonist Charles Schulz creates the Peanuts comic strip.

1953

CNR
In October 10, Jubilee Day, CNR celebrates its semi-centenary. To mark the occasion, a pair of stone pillors bearing the seal of the College and the seal of the Ursulines is erected at the entrance of Castle Place. The Angela Merici Medal, designed by Ernest Thorne Thompson, Professor of Art, is awarded for the first time to outstanding alumnae.

In the world
Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay are the first to climb Mount Everest.

1956

CNR
CNR receives the first visit of a Middle States accrediting team and receive a very positive report. A Development Office is created for fund-raising purposes, and the Ursula Laurus Citation is created to honor alumnae/i who exemplify the ideals and traditions of Ursuline education.

In the world
Fidel Castro and Che Guevara land in Cuba and begin a guerrilla war.

1957

CNR
Former Dean, Mother Mary Peter Carthy ’33, is elected President of CNR.

In the world
Beat generation writer Jack Kerouac publishes On The Road.

1958

CNR
On October 25, Angela Hall, a senior class residence, is dedicated, and on March 8-9 the first meeting of the Alumnae Council is attended by 96 alumnae leaders.

In the world
The U.S. launches the Explorer I and Vanguard I scientific satellites.

1960

CNR
On October 4, Vice Presidential candidate, Senator Lyndon B. Johnson and his wife visit the campus. Later in the month, on October 22, Mother Xavier Fitzgerald Hall (now Mooney Center) is dedicated.

In the world
The first quasars, the most luminous known objects in the universe, are discovered.

1961

CNR
Mother St. John O’Brien is elected President of CNR. On June 5, an honorary degree is given to Laurien Cardinal Ragumbwa, the first African Cardinal. The student yearbook, Annales, is changed to include informal senior photos.

In the world
President Kennedy establishes the Peace Corps.

1962

CNR
Vatican Council II which will exert major changes in the Catholic Church and CNR opens on October 11. Dutch Elm disease destroys 180 elms on and around campus.

In the world
The Cuban Missile Crisis begins when Soviet missiles are withdrawn from Cuba.

1963

CNR
Mother Mary Robert Falls is appointed as President, Ursula Hall is dedicated and the College Council, which includes students, faculty and administration is formed. 

In the world
Martin Luther King Jr. makes his “I Have a Dream” speech in Washington, D.C.

1964

CNR
CNR’s first “granddaughter,” Carolyn Harnett, graduates. She is the daughter of Jean McEvoy Harnett Van Delft ’38 and granddaughter of Dorothy Brosmith McEvoy ‘11.

In the world
Beatlemania develops during the first U.S. tour of the Beatles pop group.

1966

CNR
CNR’s Committee of Eleven vote to allow married women students to matriculate.

In the world
Mao Tse-tung begins China’s Cultural Revolution.

1967

CNR
A Statement on Academic Freedom is approved. The academic calendar is changed, and Fall semester ends in December.

In the world
Thurgood Marshall becomes the first black member of the U.S. Supreme Court.

1968

CNR
On May 5, CNR and Iona College hold a joint study day on issues raised by the US Riot Commission. Later in the month CNR holds Study Days to explore issues of racism in response to the killing of Martin Luther Kings Jr. Also this year, the Community Leadership Program is started.

In the world
Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy is assassinated.

1969

CNR
The Graduate School is established offering MA’s in Art and Reading. Rogick Hall is dedicated in honor of the late professor of biology, Dr. Mary Rogick, and parietals for resident students are approved by the Board of Trustees.

In the world
Astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin land on the Moon.

1970

CNR
Joseph P. McMurray, the first layman, is inaugurated as the tenth President of CNR. On Feburary 25, students strike in support of a professor denied a contract renewal.

In the world
Writer and feminist Germaine Greer pubishes The Female Eunich.

1971

CNR
CNR faces deficit.

In the world
Daniel Ellsberg releases copies of the Pentagon Papers to The New York Times.

1972

CNR
On October 28, Sister Dorothy Ann Kelly, OSU ’51 is inaugurated as the eleventh President of CNR. The School of New Resources begins classes in Chelsea Hall on the New Rochelle campus and opens a campus at DC-37 Headquarters in lower Manhattan for union members. Also this year, Strawberry Festival, a College-wide celebration of spring, is held for the first time.

In the world
The Watergate affair begins with the arrest of five burglars at Democratic party headquarters.

1973

CNR
On August 26, the first Commencement of the School of New Resources is held in Maura Ballroom. On August 29, the Ursulines move from Leland Castle to a new convent on Willow Drive. The School of New Resources opens a campus in Co-op City.

In the world
The World Trade Center in New York City becomes the tallest building in the world.

1974

CNR
The College awards the first masters’ degrees from the Graduate School.

In the world
President Nixon resigns.

1976

CNR
The School of Nursing opens, and on August 27, Leland Castle is placed on the National Register of Historic Buildings.

In the world
Alex Haley publishes Roots: The Saga of an American Family.

1977

CNR
The School of New Resources opens a campus at the New York Theological Seminary.

In the world
Rock ‘n roll performer Elvis Presley dies.

1978

CNR
The September 12 a Convocation begins CNR’s 75th anniversary year. The first Capping ceremony of the new School of Nursing is held on February 12.

In the world
Pope John Paul II becomes the first non-Italian Pope in more than 500 years.

1979

CNR
College Senate is formed. The Board of Regents establishes the South Bronx Campus, the first and only four-year liberal arts degree program for adults in the South Bronx.

In the world
General Saddam Hussein succeeds General al-Bakr as president of Iraq.

1980

CNR
The College governance is reorganized with creation of vice presidents and a senior vice president for academic affairs. The School of New Resources opens an extension in Brooklyn and Harlem. The Castle Galley opens in Leland Castle with an exhibition of works by the faculty.

In the world
Ted Turner begins the Cable News Network, offering round-the-clock news.

1981

CNR
A new Mission Statement is approved by the Board of Trustees which reflects the establishment at CNR of the three new Schools (Graduate School, School of New Resources, and School of Nursing.) On August 21, the Ursuline Community celebrates the centenary of its incorporation. The School of Nursing receives accreditation from National League of Nursing, retroactive to include its first class (1980) of graduates.  

In the world
Sandra Day O’Connor is appointed the first woman U.S. Supreme Court justice.

1984

CNR
The School of Nursing introduces the Graduate Program in Nursing.

In the world
Geraldine Ferraro becomes the first woman vice-presidential candidate in the U.S.

1987

CNR
The School of New Resources Center in Harlem is designated the Rosa Parks Campus in the Spring.

In the world
Colonel Oliver North testifies at the Iran-Contra Affair hearings.

1988

CNR
Xavier Hall is renovated to become the College Center. Gill Library celebrates the 50th anniversary of its dedication.

In the world
Salman Rushdie publishes The Satanic Verses.

1990

CNR
On September 15, Nobel Peace prize winner, Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa is awarded an honorary degree at a memorable academic convocation.

In the world
U.S. led coalition forces begin Operation Desert Shield to protect Saudi Arabia from Iraq.

1991

CNR
CNR dedicates a newer and larger SNR campus building in the South Bronx.

In the world
South Africa’ African National Congress elects Nelson Mandela its president.

1992

CNR
The School of New Resources celebrates its 20th anniversary. The innovative adult baccalaureate program has grown from one campus to seven in the New York metropolitan area.

In the world
Bill Clinton becomes the 43rd President.

1993

CNR
Mother Augustine Gill Dining Hall is extensively renovated to become the Student Campus Center.

In the world
Terrorists explode a bomb at New York’s World Trade Center.

1994

CNR
CNR celebrates its 90th anniversary and Dr. James T. Schleifer, Gill Library Director, publishes The College of New Rochelle: An Extraordinary Story.

In the world
Earthquake hits Los Angeles.

1996

CNR
The Ursulines and The Ursuline School celebrate 100 years of presence in New Rochelle.

In the world
The OJ Simpson trial begins when OJ is charged with murder.

1997

CNR
Sister Dorothy Ann Kelly, OSU ’51 celebrates 25 years as CNR’s President, and the Woman of Conscience Award is created in her honor to recognize moral leadership by women. On October 18, Dr. Stephen J. Sweeny is inaugurated as CNR’s twelfth President.  Co-op City Campus moves into a new facility.

In the world
Scottish researcher creates clone lamb from adult sheep DNA.

1999

CNR
Lightning severely damages Gill Library on April 6. The CNR community embarks on “Visioning” process to reflect on CNR’s future and agree upon non-negotiable values

In the world
Senate acquits President Clinton of impeachment charges.

2000

CNR
The School of New Resources South Bronx Campus is dedicated in honor of John Cardinal O’Connor, Archbishop of New York, and the School of New Resources is named a “best practice” institution for adult learners in North America by the Council for Adult and Experiential Learning. Ellen Mooney Hancock SAS ’65 makes a five million gift to CNR and in gratitude, the College Center is renamed in honor of her parents to become the Helen and Peter Mooney Art and Technology Center.

In the world
George W. Bush is elected President of the United States.

2001

CNR
Following the terrorist attacks of September 11, classes are suspended until September 17. Buildings near “Ground Zero” are damaged and The School of New Resources DC-37 campus is temporarily relocated. Prayer services, a blood drive, and open meetings allow students and staff to mourn, share feelings, and respond.

In the world
Terrorists attack the World Trade Center and Pentagon.

2002

CNR
On April 11 a renovated Gill Library is rededicated by Edward Cardinal Egan, Archbishop of New York who is awarded an honorary degree.

In the world
US Congress authorizes President Bush to use armed forces against Iraq.

2003

CNR
On September 11 The College of New Rochelle began its Centennial Year.

In the world
The start of a United States led campaign to topple Saddam Hussein.