Angelo State University

After an unsuccessful 1923 bid to be selected as the home of Texas Technological College, the residents of San Angelo decided they would create their own college, even if they had to pay for it themselves. Funded by local contributions and a self-imposed county tax, San Angelo Junior College opened its doors in 1928 on North Oakes Street near downtown San Angelo.

Barely had the college opened its doors than the Stock Market collapsed in 1929 and plunged the country into the Great Depression throughout the 1930s. But the college held its own, even dropping “Junior” from its name to become San Angelo College, or SAC, as it would be known until it became Angelo State College in 1965, and then Angelo State University in 1969.

SAC survived the downturn of the Depression and the World War II years with an eye toward the future. Having outgrown its downtown campus, the college looked to move to its current location, though tax monies were inadequate to make the change to a new campus. The residents of San Angelo stepped in and raised 300,000 to help make the transition. The university broke ground on the Administration Building in 1947.