Names may change, but our foundation doesn’t. Whether you know us as the Missouri School of Mines and Metallurgy, the University of Missouri-Rolla, or now Missouri S&T, we’re still producing the scientists and engineers who will meet tomorrow’s challenges.

No. 08: Three guys: Duncan, Gill and Peck
Today we have an association of more than 50,000 alumni. But it all began with a modest start, as the university’s first graduating class in 1874 had three members: Gustavus A. Duncan, John H. Gill and John W. Peck.

No. 09: Joe Miner
Our mascot carries a gun. And a slide rule.

No. 10: Silver and gold
Two precious metals — and S&T’s school colors.

No. 11: 1871
The opening date for the School of Mines was planned for Nov. 6, 1871, just five days after the completion of the Rolla Public School building that would provide temporary quarters for MSM. Formal ceremonies to open the school and dedicate the Rolla Building were held on Nov. 23. Despite unfavorable weather and heavy snowfall, a large crowd gathered for the event, which was “regarded as historic in its character, and as inaugurating an institution which is to last as long as the state itself,” as reported in the History of the University of Missouri School of Mines and Metallurgy 1871-1946 by Clarence N. Roberts.

No. 12: Jackling Gym
Built in 1915, the Jackling Gym was named for Daniel C. Jackling, MetE 1892, who made a fortune in the copper mining business. It housed a basketball court and an indoor swimming pool, and doubled as a dorm for student-athletes. The gym’s original plaque is housed in the alumni office.

No. 13: Slide rules
Common on campus in the 1950s and 1960s, the slide rule helped students quickly and precisely perform complex calculations. The era of the slide rule ended in the 1970s, when pocket calculators like the TI-30 became more affordable. Today you can still find one propped on Joe Miner’s shoulder. There is also a big collection of them in the S&T archives.

No. 14: Fraternities and sororities
The myth about fraternities and sororities is that they are all about partying. But here at Missouri S&T, Greeks tend to be leaders both in and out of the classroom. Nearly one in four Miners go Greek.

No. 15: Engineering songs that we can’t print the lyrics to
There’s a natural connection to mathematics and music. So it’s not surprising that many alumni secretly love their engineering songs. We’d love to share them, but they’re so raunchy we can’t print their lyrics. There once was a man from Nantucket …

No. 16: MSM
The University of Missouri School of Mines and Metallurgy (MSM) was founded in 1870 — the first technological institution west of the Mississippi, and one of the first in the nation. A product of the Morrill Act of 1862 and the land-grant movement of the late 19th century, MSM was Missouri’s response to the acute need for scientific and practical education in the developing nation. During the inaguration of the school, Daniel Read, president of the University of Missouri, stated its purpose: “This school is to be a school both of science and of its applications: its purpose is to teach knowledge and art — first to know and then to do, and to do in the best manner.”

No. 17: UMR
In 1964, in recognition of its expanded nature and role, the name of the institution was changed to the University of Missouri-Rolla. UMR, as it quickly came to be called, was one of four campuses comprising the newly reorganized University of Missouri System. The change from “school” to “university” sought to expand and strengthen programs in engineering, sciences and liberal arts.

No. 18: Missouri S&T
In 2008, the university’s name was changed to Missouri University of Science and Technology to more accurately represent its focus as a top technological research university.

No. 19: Grid-iron guys
As any college football fan knows, there are legendary successes that stick with a team. Like in 1914, when our Miner football team went undefeated, outscoring opponents 540-0. Or in 1950, when the Miners beat out Illinois Normal, 7-6, to win a bowl title. No, not Pasadena’s Rose Bowl or Dallas’s Cotton Bowl. In Bloomington, Ill., the annual Thanksgiving Day game was known as the Corn Bowl. You can see the original game program at the alumni office.