News

Sept. 3, 1963: Opening day of the University of Pittsburgh, Bradford Campus. College freshmen gather under the portico at Hamsher House, a former dormitory for Bradford Hospital's nursing students and now the hub of Pitt-Bradford. Some students have just come from their first class; others wait for friends to join them in The Tuck Shop, a snack bar inside.

A crowd of about 500 students, faculty, staff, alumni and community members attended the Founders' Day celebration Sept. 3, marking the 50th anniversary since the school opened its doors on Sept. 3, 1963.

Pitt-Bradford opened its doors in the fall of 1963, but it wasn’t until 1967 that the campus fielded its athletic teams. Two men played a big role in introducing the university to collegiate sports: Art Schake and Keith Smith.

The headline in The Era the morning of Oct. 16, 1962, was about as big a news story as Bradford had had since Yuri Gagarin circled the earth the year before. "Pitt to Open Up Area Campus Here" stretched across the top of the page in 100-point type.

On Oct. 16, 1962, University of Pittsburgh Chancellor Edward Litchfield announced that Bradford had been selected as a location for a two-year regional campus to meet the education needs of the region. Four months later, on Feb. 4, 1963, Dr. Donald Swarts, then academic dean of the Johnstown Campus of the University of Pittsburgh, was named president of the new Bradford campus. His task was clear: Work with an advisory board and community leaders to open a new campus by September 1963.

Dr. Livingston Alexander, president of the Pitt-Bradford, knew there was one thing we definitely wanted to accomplish as part of the university's 50th anniversary commemoration.

In the early years of Pitt-Bradford, students relied on family, work and private scholarships to pay for their tuition and fees.

Forty years ago, Craig Hartburg started his freshman year at the Pitt-Bradford. This fall, Hartburg will mark his ninth year as chairman of the Advisory Board. The irony is not lost on Hartburg, who has taken this incredible responsibility to heart as well as his predecessors, Hon. John Cleland and Bill Higie.

Pitt-Bradford will celebrate the campus's history as Bradford's original airport as part of celebrations for its 50th anniversary.

Dr. Mark Kelley, assistant professor of sports medicine, and alumnus Joe Colosimo ’94 will be honored by the Pitt-Bradford Alumni Association during Alumni and Family Weekend.