The Story of NMSU and DACC
The story of New Mexico State University dates back quite some time, and at its origin, the university was built day by day into what we see today. In fact, the story of NMSU begins in 1888, when it was first established as Las Cruces College. The college opened its doors on September 17, 1888, in a small two-room building in Las Cruces. At the time, New Mexico was still a territory of the United States, and higher education opportunities in the territory were extremely limited. The organizers of Las Cruces College were led by Hiram Hadley, a respected educator from Indiana who had come to New Mexico in 1887. Hadley would become the first president of Las Cruces College and would play an important role in the early development of what would eventually become New Mexico State University. His story can still be seen around the university today through buildings and landmarks that carry his name. Hadley was not just interested in creating a small local school; he had much bigger plans in mind for education in the Mesilla Valley.
In 1889, those plans began to become something much bigger. The New Mexico territorial legislature authorized the creation of an agricultural college and experiment station in or near Las Cruces. The new institution became New Mexico's land-grant college under the Morrill Act and was named the New Mexico College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts, commonly referred to as New Mexico A&M. Las Cruces College would merge with the new agricultural college, creating the institution that would officially open on January 21, 1890. That first semester gives us a good idea of just how small the school was compared to what NMSU is today. There were only 35 students taking college-level and preparatory classes and six faculty members. Classes continued to meet in the old two-room Las Cruces College building while more suitable buildings were being prepared on a new 220-acre campus about three miles south of Las Cruces. Eventually, the campus would continue growing far beyond those original 220 acres. One of the first major buildings on the new campus was McFie Hall, which opened in 1891 and became known as Old Main. The early campus may have looked very different from the university we know today, but the foundation was already being created. Agriculture, mechanics, mathematics, science and other practical areas of education were becoming part of the school's identity.
During all of this, New Mexico was still not a state. Believe it or not, New Mexico would not officially become a state until 1912, 24 years after the agricultural college opened. So, when NMSU first began, it was being built in a completely different New Mexico than the one we know today. The school was growing at the same time the territory itself was working toward becoming a state. Over the years, the school continued to grow and change. What started as a small two-room college eventually became a major university. In 1960, the school's name was changed to New Mexico State University through a state constitutional amendment. This was another major point in the university's history, showing just how far the school had grown from its original beginnings as Las Cruces College. Today, the difference between the original school and NMSU is huge.
One of the most interesting parts of researching this history was finding an original NMSU yearbook from 1907 in the online library. At the time, the school was still known as the New Mexico College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts. For someone who is naturally curious, finding something like this was an amazing experience, but for me it was even more interesting because I was looking at a time period from a place where I was born and raised. The yearbook gave me a different look at Las Cruces and the university by showing what life was like more than 100 years ago.
The yearbook highlighted some of the school's early sports teams, including football, basketball, track and baseball. Being able to see what these teams looked like around that time made the history feel much more real. It was not just reading a date or a fact from a history book; I was actually looking at photographs and pages created by students who attended the school in 1907. It gave me a small glimpse into what student life and the university looked like during that era.
The cost of attending the school in 1907 was also something that caught my attention. According to the yearbook, New Mexico residents could attend for just $5 for a full four-year degree, while out-of-state residents paid $15. When you compare that to the cost of college today, those numbers are almost hard to believe. NMSU is still known for being one of the more affordable four-year universities, but I don't think we would be able to manage tuition prices of $5 to $15 today.
The yearbook also contained advertisements from businesses that were around Las Cruces at the time. This was one of the most interesting parts for me because it connected the history of NMSU to the history of the town itself. One advertisement I came across was for a grocery merchant named Martin Lohman. After seeing his name, I discovered that Lohman Street in Las Cruces was named after Martin Lohman because of his contributions and involvement in helping the city grow during the early 1900s. Seeing a name from an old advertisement and then realizing that the same person was connected to a street that I have known for years was something I did not expect to find.
Looking through the 1907 yearbook made me realize how much history can be hidden in something as simple as an old school publication. I have lived in Las Cruces for years, but seeing photographs, advertisements, sports teams and names from more than a century ago gave me a completely different perspective of the city and the university. It showed me that the places I see every day have a much deeper history than what we might notice just by walking past them.
The main Las Cruces campus now covers about 900 acres, compared with the original 220-acre campus. According to NMSU's Fall 2025 Census Report, the entire NMSU system had 23,788 students, including 16,076 students at the Las Cruces campus and 7,649 students at Doña Ana Community College. Another important part of that growth is Doña Ana Community College, or DACC. DACC was established in 1973 in collaboration with local school districts to provide vocational and technical education opportunities for people living in Doña Ana County. More than 50 years later, DACC celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2023 and has become an important part of the NMSU system and the community. NMSU has also built a strong identity outside of the classroom. From its early focus on agriculture and mechanics to its development of engineering, science, business, education, the arts and many other programs, the university has continued to expand what it offers to students.
Looking at NMSU today, it is easy to forget just how small its beginnings really were. What started in 1888 as a two-room building with a small group of students eventually grew into a university system serving tens of thousands of students. From Hiram Hadley and the first students of Las Cruces College, to the creation of New Mexico A&M, the growth of the campus, the creation of DACC, the development of Aggie athletics and the evolution of Pistol Pete, every part of the university's history has helped build what we see today.
For me, finding that 1907 yearbook made this history feel more personal. It was not just the history of a university; it was a look into the history of the same community where I was born and raised. Seeing the people, businesses, students and teams from that time gave me a better understanding of how much Las Cruces and NMSU have changed while also showing how many parts of the community's history are still around us today.
The story of NMSU is really a story of growth. It started with a small idea in Las Cruces and, day by day, building by building, class by class and generation by generation, became the New Mexico State University that students walk through today.
Sources
Swastika, Volume 1, 1907 | View | Openaccess
NMSU, OSU Pistol Pete duel settled
Census Enrollment Reports | New Mexico State University | BE BOLD. Shape the Future.
New Mexico State University | BE BOLD. Shape the Future. (Presidents and Chancellors of NMSU)
New Mexico State University | BE BOLD. Shape the Future. (Our Heritage)
New Mexico State University | BE BOLD. Shape the Future. (History of NMSU's Triangular Logo)
