Virginia Tech opened in 1872 as Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College. The college was as a land-grant institution, and its first president was Charles L. C. Minor, who presided over the college until 1879. Before opening the school, meetings took place with appointed board members who decided that the college would focus on educating students in industrial fields, such as farming and mining.
During the first academic year, the school enrolled 132 students, all of them white males. For facilities, the university purchased the land and buildings of the Preston and Olin Institute. In the years following establishment, the college bought 80 acres of surrounding farmland and drew plans to build new buildings and facilities.
Virginia Tech focused on educating young men for work in fields that dealt with industry but also served as a place for families to send their sons to get a proper education in all areas of study.
In 1892, the college awarded their first master's degree to Charles M. McBryde. Two years later, the school's enrollment topped 300 students for the first time. In 1896, the school formally changed its named to Virginia Polytechnic Institute.
In 1891, John McLaren McBryde became president of the university. During his tenure, he oversaw the birth of student clubs and organizations, the foundation of a school athletic association and the selection of the school's official colors: orange and maroon.
VT now has nine colleges (ranging from agriculture to business to liberal arts) and a graduate school, offering 65 bachelor's programs and 145 master's and doctoral programs, with over 30,000 total students.
The Virginia Tech athletic association debuted in 1891. The school competes in 21 different sports, with the most notable being the school's football program. All varsity sports compete in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Founded in 1892, the Virginia Tech football team has enjoyed a successful history, winning seven conference championships in three different conferences (Southern, Big East, ACC).
Virginia Tech also enjoys success in basketball, baseball and track and field.
However, no Virginia Tech varsity team has ever won a national championship
Many people associate Virginia Tech with its unique nickname, the Hokies. The VT mascot is a turkey-like creature, known as the Hokie Bird. However, according to the Virginia Tech website, Hokie actually has nothing to do with a turkey. A student coined the term in 1896 as part of a contest to create a new school cheer.
The turkey-like bird came in during the 1913 football season, when a student would parade around a turkey during football games. During the mid 20th century, a costumed "gobbler" debuted and remains the image of Virginia Tech athletics.
VT is one of only three public universities in the U.S. that has an active Corps of Cadets along with its general student population. The Corps was organized along with the college's foundation. Up until 1964, participation in the Corps was mandatory for all male students.
Virginia Tech is unfortunately home to one of the most infamous incidents in American college history.
On April 16, 2007, VT student Seung-Hui Cho went on a deadly rampage that ended in the shooting deaths of 32 people, while also wounding 25 other people. The incident took place in the early hours of the morning, starting in a dormitory and ending in the school's Norris Hall, where Cho took his own life.
The shooting caught widespread media attention, and garnered sympathy from many other universities. In a popular slogan of remembrance, students across the country declared "Today, we are all Hokies."