The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill was founded in 1789, making it one of the oldest public universities in the United States. The school began as a one-room schoolhouse called the “New Building” established by the state legislature upon the creation of Granville County. The first president of what is now known as UNC was Joseph Caldwell, a Presbyterian minister and theologian who had been educated at Princeton Theological Seminary. In 1805, the school moved to its current location with a new name: “The University of North Carolina.”
In 1877, former U.S. President Andrew Johnson became Chancellor of the university after being elected to Congress from Tennessee. He was also Vice President under Abraham Lincoln during his second term in office (1865–68).
In 1793, President Thomas Jefferson visited the campus and said he “beheld with delight” the “majestic beauty” of the then-university. He praised its architecture and importance as a center for higher education.
The university has grown since its founding to include more than 33,000 students and nearly 200 majors and minors. It has nine colleges and schools that offer more than 200 programs of study leading to bachelor’s degrees, master’s degrees and doctoral degrees.
The school’s athletic teams are known as the Tar Heels; they compete in NCAA Division I athletics and have won numerous national titles in several sports, including men’s basketball and women’s soccer.
