On March 5, 1819, the New York State Assembly granted a charter to the Baptist Education Society of New York, formally founding the institution that became Colgate University.
That day was the fulfillment of the vision set forth in the well-known story of 13 men gathering with 13 dollars in Olmstead House. March 5, 2019, was, thus, the actual day of Colgate’s Bicentennial.
On the 200th anniversary of the charter, campus community members were invited to Memorial Chapel to offer one dollar in support of the Southern Madison County Volunteer Ambulance Corps (SOMAC), the Hamilton Food Cupboard, and the Hamilton Fire Department.
By day’s end, with a matching gift from alumni and parent couple Stephen ’85 and Melissa Rock P’13’19’20, the collection totaled $8,508. An anonymous member of the university community subsequently provided an additional $4,492 in support, bringing Colgate’s Charter Day giving to $13,000.