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Milestones

  • 1862 – Morrill Act provides grants to states and territories agreeing to establish public institutions that teach agriculture and mechanical arts. In 1864, Rutgers was designated the land-grant college of New Jersey, resulting in the establishment of the Rutgers Scientific School (the predecessor of the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences) to deliver the land-grant mission.
  • 1880 – New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station (NJAES) is the third experiment station in the nation to be established. Its two functions are to conduct research and help residents of the state put this knowledge to work.
  • 1887 – The Hatch Act establishes federal funding for agricultural experiment stations at land-grant institutions. In 1888, the New Jersey State Legislature established NJAES with matching funds from the Hatch Act.
  • 1889 – New Jersey Hall is built to house NJAES.
  • 1906 – John B. Smith's research leads to legislation that establishes Mosquito Extermination Commissions in New Jersey.
  • 1914 – The Smith-Lever Act establishes the Cooperative Extension Service at each land-grant institution.
  • 1944 – Albert Schatz and Selman Waksman co-discover streptomycin, the first antibiotic effective against tuberculosis, tularemia, whooping cough, and forms of meningitis. In 1952, Waksman won the Nobel Prize.
  • 1953 – Howard Ellison, regarded as one of the most influential asparagus breeders in history, joins the faculty. He produces several hybrids that are among the most productive and widely adaptable ever developed.
  • 1962 – Reed Funk establishes one of the world's most extensive turfgrass breeding programs.
  • 1964 – William J. Roberts develops the first air-inflated double-layer polyethylene greenhouse covering system. Today, approximately 65 percent of all commercial greenhouses in the United States use the air-inflated system.
  • 1965 – Elwin Orton begins the dogwood breeding project that would result in the famous "Stellar Series" of dogwoods.
  • 1978–1979 – Budd Chavoosian's land use research and David Fairbrothers' botany research underpins legislation to protect the New Jersey Pinelands.
  • 1991 – Richard Lutz witnesses a volcanic eruption during a deep-sea dive on the Pacific seabed. On a return visit in 1993, he finds deep-sea creatures that returned to the site of the eruption. This leads to new discoveries in geology, chemistry, microbiology, and marine ecology.
  • 1998 – Randy Gaugler develops new methods for the genetic improvement of insect-killing nematodes. This work results in the first reported field release of a nonmicrobial "natural enemy" of insect pests.
  • 1999 – Nicholi Vorsa and Amy Howell are investigators of a study that is the first to document the specific components in cranberries that promote urinary tract health.
  • 2002 – MONEY 2000, a program developed by Patricia Brennan and Barbara O'Neill, is recognized with a USDA Honors Award.
  • 2004 – NJAES launches a major new initiative called New Jersey––Living Well. The initiative represents a strategic refocusing to address New Jersey residents' needs in the area of food, nutrition, and health.