Historical Chronology of The University of Iowa College of Dentistry

• 1847 Iowa becomes a state. The University is organized.
• 1855 University of Iowa classes begin in Iowa City.
• 1863 The Iowa State Dental Society is founded in Muscatine.
• 1870 P.T. Smith, the first dentistry lecturer, joins the newly established UI Department of Medicine.
• 1882 The Iowa legislature passes laws regulating dentists and the UI Department of Dentistry is founded, with fourteen enrolled students; Luman C. Ingersoll is dean.
• 1888 Dean Ingersoll is dismissed after an investigation. A.O. Hunt becomes dean.
• 1896 After another investigation, Dean Hunt is dismissed and University president Charles Schaeffer becomes interim dean.
• 1898 William Hosford becomes dean.
• 1900 The Dentistry Department becomes the College of Dentistry.
• 1913 Thomas J. McLernon is named dean but resigns after three months (Sept.-Dec.). Des Moines’ Drake University dental school merges with The University of Iowa’s College of Dentistry.
• 1914 Frank T. Breene is named dean. World War I begins in Europe.
• 1917 The College of Dentistry moves into new building (Trowbridge Hall).
• 1918 The College of Dentistry’s academic year begins during the summer session, to speed students’ progress toward graduation. World War I begins and the College offers free dental services to Iowans who have been rejected by the Armed Services because of tooth defects. The influenza epidemic reaches its peak in Iowa.
• 1919 Enrollment overload begins at the College of Dentistry.
• 1922 The Gies committee, which is evaluating dental education in the United States, visits the College of Dentistry.
• 1932 The College celebrates its fiftieth anniversary. A.W. Bryan becomes dean. The Great Depression results in a drop in enrollment and five percent salary cuts.
• 1941 The United States enters World War II after Japan attacks Pearl Harbor.
• 1942 An accelerated schedule begins at the College of Dentistry; with a new class enrolling every nine months.
• 1945 World War II ends.
• 1952 W.O. Simon becomes dean.
• 1953 The Dental Hygiene Department is founded.
• 1961 George Easton becomes dean.
• 1966 Donald J. Galagan becomes dean.
• 1968 Orthodontics professor George Andreasen patents orthodontic appliances using the Nitinol wire, which can move and straighten teeth using a patient’s body heat.
• 1973 The College moves into the new Dental Science Building.
• 1974 James H. McLeran becomes dean.
• 1976 The Dows Institute for Dental Research is established.
• 1982 The College of Dentistry's centennial is observed.
• 1985 The College of Dentistry is one of the first U.S. institutions to use dental implants.
• 1989 Four College of Dentistry alumni volunteer their forensic skills to identify crash victims of United Airlines flight 232 in Sioux City.
• 1995 David C. Johnsen becomes dean.
• 1996 The College of Dentistry's student research program receives national attention, winning the prestigious American Association of Dental Schools/William J. Gies Research Scholarship Award.
  
• 1998 The new Simulation Clinic is completed, a facility with 80 modules for predoctoral training and continuing education, a technique laboratory and a 40-seat electronic teaching classroom.
  
• 2000 The College of Dentistry is the recipient of a $2 million estate gift from Dr. B.F. Dewel, a 1925 graduate and former clinical instructor. Dr. John Casko, professor and head of the Department of Orthodontics, receives the first endowed faculty chair, the B.F. and Helen E. Dewel Chair.
• 2002 Dean David C. Johnsen serves as president of the American Dental Education Association.
• 2002 The College of Dentistry's Advanced Education in Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology Program (OMR) becomes the first accredited program in the U.S. following the American Dental Association's recognition of OMR as a new dental specialty in 1999.
• 2004 The College of Dentistry receives a $2.5 million bequest from Dr. Bob Williams, a 1973 graduate, and his wife, Jeri. The gift will be used for an endowed fund and will be earmarked for professorships or chairs. The Williamses also make a five-year commmitment to create the Dr. Bob H. and Jerilee H. Williams Professorship in Restorative Dentistry. Dr. Gerald Denehy, professor and head of operative dentistry, is named to the professorship.
• 2005 The Muscatine Pediatric Dentistry Clinic opens with a grant from the Roy J. Carver Charitable Trust. Staffed by faculty and senior dental students, the clinic treats children up to age 12 from Muscatine and Louisa Counties.
• 2006 Dean David C. Johnsen is selected to head the Presidential Search Panel for The University of Iowa's 20th president.
• 2006 During The University of Iowa's Good. Better. Best. Iowa campaign, the College raises $22 million for projects that will "enhance education, strengthen research, and ultimately advance the dental profession." During this campaign, 12 professorships are created.
• 2007 The College of Dentistry celebrates its 125th anniversary.