Charter Day

Charter Day — officially March 23, the day on which in 1868 Governor Henry H. Haight signed the legislative act creating the University of California — was first celebrated in 1874, when University President Daniel C. Gilman declared a University holiday,

From 1874 to 1891, the celebration of Charter Day was sponsored by the students. A morning program included student oratory, poetry and musical performances, as well as an address from a faculty member, while the afternoon was devoted to dancing. In 1892, the event became a formal, academic ceremony and included a speaker from outside the University as the main attraction of the exercises.

As the University expanded, Charter Day was extended into “Charter Week,” with each campus holding a celebration of its own. However, the practice of declaring a University holiday ended after 1931. The first Charter Day celebration held on the Davis campus occurred on March 25, 1938, with a speech by Claude B. Hutchison, Dean of the College of Agriculture.

In the photograph below, the academic procession passes under one of the cork oak trees lining the UC Davis Quad as it moves from Hunt Hall to Recreation Hall for the Charter Day ceremonies. Next behind the color guard are (left to right) President Emeritus Robert Gordon Sproul, the Rev. Ray Dugger, Chancellor Stanley B. Freeborn, Vice President Harry R. Wellman, Regent Howard C. Naffziger, Regent John S. Watson, and Dean Donald M. Jasper of the School of Veterinary Medicine. 

A belated happy 143rd birthday to the University of California!