1917
2015
1917 - On May 25, 1917, Theodore Martin Hesburgh is born in Syracuse, New York. He was welcomed by his parents, Theodore Bernard Hesburgh and Anne Marie (Murphy) Hesburgh. He is the second of five children.
Theodore Hesburgh as a baby with his sister Mary, 1918.
Source: University of Notre Dame Archives.
1934 - Theodore Hesburgh begins his studies at the University of Notre Dame.
Theodore Hesburgh (second from left), as a seminarian, during his first academic year at Notre Dame, with fellow students in front of Holy Cross Hall, 1935.
Source: University of Notre Dame Archives.
1943 - On June 24, 1943, Theodore Hesburgh is ordained as a priest of the Congregation of the Holy Cross.
Congregation of the Holy Cross Ordination, with Rev. Theodore M. Hesburgh, C.S.C. (center), 1943.
Source: University of Notre Dame Archives.
1952 - At the age of 35, Father Hesburgh becomes the 15th president of the University of Notre Dame. He is quietly named president during a spring retreat.
Portrait of Rev. Theodore M. Hesburgh, C.S.C., c. 1950s.
Source: University of Notre Dame Archives.
1957 - President Dwight D. Eisenhower appoints Father Hesburgh to the United States Civil Rights Commission.
U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, swearing in at the White House, January 3, 1958.
Source: University of Notre Dame Archives.
1962 - A portrait of Fr. Hesburgh graces the cover of Time magazine.
Portrait of Rev. Theodore M. Hesburgh, C.S.C., on the cover of TIME magazine, February 9, 1962. Painting by Henry Koerner.
Source: University of Notre Dame Archives.
1964 - President Lyndon B. Johnson awards Father Hesburgh the Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor in the United States.
President Johnson shakes hands with Rev. Theodore M. Hesburgh, after presenting him with the Medal of Freedom, September 9, 1964.
Source: University of Notre Dame Archives.
1964 - Father Hesburgh attends a civil rights rally at Soldier Field in Chicago, where he is photographed holding hands with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., singing We Shall Overcome.
Father Hesburgh, together with Martin Luther King, Jr., during a 1964 civil rights rally at Chicago's Soldier Field.
Source: University of Notre Dame Archives.
1969 - President Richard Nixon appoints Father Hesburgh as chair of the U.S. Civil Rights Commission.
United States Civil Rights Commission, February 14, 1969. Back row: Dr. Hector P. Garcia, Howard Glickstein, Frankie Muse Freeman, Maurice B. Mitchell. Front row: Rev. Theodore M. Hesburgh, John A. Hannah, and Robert Rankin.
Source: University of Notre Dame Archives.
1972 - Father Hesburgh admits the first women to undergraduate programs at the University of Notre Dame.
Rev. Theodore M. Hesburgh dances with female student Mary Blazek during a campus picnic celebrating his 25th anniversary as University President, c. 1970s.
Source: University of Notre Dame Archives.
1987 - After 35 years, Father Hesburgh retires as president of the University of Notre Dame.
Portrait of Rev. Theodore M. Hesburgh, C.S.C., c. 1987.
Source: University of Notre Dame Archives.
1990 - Father Hesburgh authors a New York Times best-selling autobiography, God, Country, Notre Dame.
Cover of Father Hesburgh's autobiography, God, Country, Notre Dame, published by University of Notre Dame Press, 1990.
Source: University of Notre Dame Archives.