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In 1878, Wanamaker's of Philadelphia, became the first U.S.
department store to install electric lighting. The first Bell
telephone company was started, and the dancer Bill "Bojangles"
Robinson was born. Lillian Moller Gilbreth, a mother of 12,
invented the electric food mixer.
Around these parts, however, 1878 is heralded as the year
USM got its start. It was then that Gorham Normal School was
founded, the first of several predecessor institutions that
make up our richly historied campus.
Have things changed a lot since the early days? You decide.
Then
Faculty at Gorham Normal School in 1878 totaled five instructors,
including founding president William Corthell.
The first graduating class of Gorham Normal School, in 1880,
totaled 45 students.
In 1878, inspectors at the site of the future Gorham Normal
School reportedly "looked carefully at all the surroundings
and picked all the rocks with their useful umbrellas."
Among the formal rules of Gorham Normal School was the following:
"Do not suck a spoonful of ice cream and then draw it
out of the mouth."
The first international student to attend the University
was Yasuko Naruto, in 1949.
Hitchhiking was the approved method of transportation for
students during the Russell years (1905-1940).
Average teachers' salaries in 1917 were $11.40 week.
Now
In 2003, there are 411 regular faculty at USM.
USM's Class of 2003 totals 1,380 undergraduate and graduate
students.
In 2003, engineers detonated 1,275 pounds of explosives to
remove 773 cubic yards of rock from the future site of the
USM parking garage.
Current rules of conduct don't extend to ice cream, but Brian
Wiacek, director of dining services, says, "Throwing
food is not allowed, it is strongly discouraged."
Currently, there are over 100 international students from
over 40 countries.
Today, 3,000-3,500 student riders are carried each week aboard
the Portland-Gorham shuttle.
Average beginning teachers' salaries for USM grads in Maine
are now $26,085.
Data
compiled from records in the University Archives.
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