1952: In 1952, Eastern Baptist College is organized as a separate institution, offering four-year undergraduate programs. The first classes are held at the Wynnewood campus. 

1952: Built between 1911-1916, Walmarthon was home to Charles S. Walton Jr., a former Chairman of the Seminary Trustees.

1952: Thomas England Walton, son of Charles S. Walton Sr., adds his adjacent estate, Bonalton, to the sale, providing the Fairview Dormitory (now Doane Hall) to the expanding campus.

1952: Virginia B. Taggart also sells her beautiful estate on the hill overlooking the east side of campus to Eastern Baptist College. Her spacious home became Eagle Dormitory (now Guffin Hall).

1953: Hainer Hall (now Hainer North and South) is completed and occupied by men only.

1953: Men’s Basketball was introduced as the College's first competitive collegiate sport. Since the College did not yet have a gymnasium, the team only played away games until 1959 when the gymnasuim was completed. 

1953: An Eagle is chosen by students as Eastern’s mascot on November 16th. 

1954: The Carriage House is converted into the new Science Building (now Andrews Hall), adding more sciences, like chemistry, to the expanding college curriculum. 

1957: The Fairview Dormitory is expanded and renamed Doane Hall in honor of Marguerite Treat Doane, a family friend of the Walton's and generous donor to the College. 

December 7, 1971: Eastern Baptist College was renamed Eastern College: A Baptist Institution.

1972: McInnis Learning Center (now McInnis Hall) is built as the first dedicated academic building on the St. Davids campus. The Planetarium opens. It is later named the Julia Fowler Planetarium in memory of the wife of Trustee Conrad Fowler.

1973: The Seminary launches its first Doctor of Ministry program.

1978: Dr. Wallace Charles Smith MDiv ’74, DMin ’79 becomes the first full-time African American Professor of the Seminary and established the Frank B. Mitchell Lecture Series (‘81).

1982: The first full-time African American professor of the College was Mr. Timothy Johnson who taught Social Work. 

1986: Grow Groups are introduced as a way for students to further their spiritual growth on campus. Two years later, the Student Chaplain Program was started by students to grow spiritually together.

1987: Dr. Roberta Hestenes becomes the College’s seventh president (and first female president), the first president to serve only Eastern College.

1990: An original Mozart manuscript is among a handful of long forgotten classical music manuscripts donated by Marguerite Treat Doane that are discovered in a Seminary safe. The manuscripts sell at auction for approximately $1.5 million. 

1992: The discovery of the Mozart manuscript provides capital for the restoration of the full music program under the leadership of Dr. Ronald Matthews, now president of the University.

1991: The Seminary launches an extension program in the state of West Virginia, providing degrees in Master of Divinity and Doctorate of Ministry.

1995: Shane Claiborne ’97 and fellow students launch Youth Against Complacency and Homelessness Today (YACHT) Club.

1996: The Bradstreet Observatory in McInnis Hall is completed and named after Professor Dr. David Bradstreet ’76. It's control room is named in honor of its architect, Trustee Earl Russell, Sr.

1997: Women’s Volleyball wins its first of many conference titles, and goes on to earn a trip to compete in its first NCAA tournament in 1999.

1999: The Templeton Honors College opens with gifts and generous support from Drs. John and Josephine Templeton.

2000: Nueva Esperanza and Eastern College enter into a partnership to form a junior college called Nueva Esperanza Center for Higher Education (NECHE).

December 1, 2001: Fulfilling the dreams of our founders, Eastern College is granted university status and becomes Eastern University.

2003: Two years after the college achieves university status, Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary and Eastern University reunite, and EBTS becomes The Seminary of Eastern University.

2005: The Seminary is renamed Palmer Theological Seminary in honor of Gordon Palmer ’60 DDiv, the Seminary’s third and longest-serving president, with a generous gift from his daughter-in-law, Virginia Palmer.

2006: Multicultural Awareness Advisory Committee (MAAC) is created by Jared Bass ’07 (now a Board Member) and Frenika (Mudd) Rivers ’05 with Dr. Jackie Irving as the first Director. The Black Student League was previously formed in ’71. 

2007: With the undergraduate population expanding to over 1,200 students, the new Eagle Residence Hall opens to house 175 students. 

2009: Eastern launches the first Doctoral Program in Organizational Leadership.

2012: The Water Wheel, which once pumped water up to the mansion's gardens, is completely renovated in time for its 100th Birthday.

2015: Palmer Seminary celebrates the first Open Seminary Graduating Class.

2015: Chaplain Joseph Modica and members of Temple Beth Shalom in Needham, MA, launch the Chamberlain Interfaith Fellowship (CIF), honoring the life & legacy of Dr. Ted J. Chamberlain, with generous contributions from David and Sydney Feldman. 

2017: Eastern University announces the Eastern Fastpass online program, designed to help save students time, money, and stress by providing residential students in our traditional undergra

2019: Eastern University hosts a special screening and faith summit surrounding the premiere of Just Mercy, a book-turned-movie by lawyer, author, and social activist Bryan Stevenson ’81.

2020: With the outbreak of COVID-19 and shut downs in April, on-campus undergraduate classes resume in Fall 2020 with a hybrid model, a modified schedule, and lots of masking and social distancing.

2021: Rev. Dr. Kimberlee A. Johnson becomes Interim Dean of Palmer Seminary, and in 2023 becomes the permanent Dean and first female to lead the Seminary.

2023: The Music Department and Eastern University Athletics announce plans to launch a marching band. The band starts performances in the 2024-25 academic year.

March 19, 2025: Eastern University celebrates the seminary’s 100th anniversary on Founder’s Day with its Centennial Celebration.