| 1620 |
Don Juan Jeronimo guerrerro, a retired army officer decided to spend the rest of his life in the welfare and education of abandoned and orphaned children. He gave this institution the name: COLEGIO DE NIÑOS HUERFANOS DE SAN JUAN DE LETRAN, from the Basilica of St. John of Lateran in Rome. |
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| 1623 |
Philip IV, Kinf of Spain, informed about Guerrero's institution, issued a royal decree (cedula) on July 16, 1623, placing it under his patronage and granting it a subsidy of seven hundred pesos, which would continue until the end of the 19th century. |
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| 1630 |
FRAY DIEGO SANTA MARIA, Dominican lay brother, arrived from Spain and was assigned as porter of the Priory of Santos Domingo (Convento de Santo Domingo). He, too, took pity on the poor and abandoned boys of Manila and gave them shelter in a room adjacent to his office, taught them the rudiments in human knowledge and religion. Fray Diego called this community of orphan boys the COLEGIO DE NIÑOS HUERFANOS DE SAN PEDRO Y SAN PABLO. |
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| 1632 |
In May of this year Fray Diego de Santa Maria, O.P. may have arrived at Sto. Domingo from Spain via Mexico. he was officially assigned to this same convent on April 23, 1633 and was given the task of conventual porter. He founded the COLEGIO DE NIÑOS HUERFANOS DE SAN PEDRO Y SAN PABLO. |
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| 1640 |
As Don Juan was dying, the Governor General Sebastian Hurtado de Corcuera and the Archbishop of Manila, Most Rev. hernando Guerrero, begged Fray Diego to take charge of the COLEGIO DE NIÑOS HUERFANOS DE SAN JUAN DE LETRAN. The merger of two similar institurion was effected known first as COLEGIO DE NIÑOS HUERFANOS DE SAN PEDRO Y SAN PABLO DE SAN JUAN DE LETRAN. For a time one name prevailed over the other Eventually, the second one remained. |
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| 1655 |
Death of Fray Diego de Santa Maria |
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| 1706 |
The Provincial Chapter of the Dominicans in the Philippines decided during this year to adopt officially the name COLEGIO DE SAN JUAN DE LETRAN in memory of Don Juan Geronimo Guerrero, the first founder and declared St.s Peter and Paul as its special patron.
Primay education was formally established in Letran. NOte that traditionally secondary education was offered in Letran from the earliest years. though some classes had to be held at Santo tomas for lack of space in Letran. The construction of the first chapel of Letran was completed. |
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| 1747 |
VICENTE LIEM, native of Tunquin, was accepted on 21 May 1747 as a scholar in Letran. He was known among his classmates as Vicente Liam de la Paz because of his serene and peaceful personality. He pursued higher studies at the University of Santo Tomas and then joined the Dominican Order on September 9, 1754. He was ordained priest in 1758. On 20 January 1759 he returned to his native land where four years later on November 4, 1773, he died a martyr's death in defense of faith. |
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| 1820 |
The main building underwent major improvements. And a semblance of unity and harmony in the campus, which grew over the years through the acquisition of surrounding lots, wa also affected. |
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| 1865 |
Letran was declared a College of First Class by royal decree of May 20. The result was that the school population rose cansiderably. |
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| 1886 |
Fr. Bernardino Nozaleda, rector, and future Archbishop of Manila, re-organized the set-up of elementary education in Letran into the Lower, Middle and Superior grades (Infima, Media y Superior), which was then considered at par with the that of many countries in Europe and America. |
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| 1902 |
Gymnastic equipments were installed in one of the gardens within the campus. |
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| 1906 |
VICENTE LIEM DE LA PAZ, who studied in Letran in the 1700s and died a martyr's death in om his native Tunquin (Vietnam), was beatufied by Pope Pius X on May 20 1906. |
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| 1918 |
The first yearbook was published in Spanish by the graduating classes. It replaced the traditional "boletin" which was actually a prospectus carryign also the the list of graduates, their courses, tehir awards, etc. The first yearbook was dedicated to Letran alumnus, Bishop Alfredo Verzosa of Lipa. |
| 1928 |
Letran joins National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA ) |
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| 1941 |
War came to the Philippines. Letran was bombed. But even as the main building burned, the letters LETRAN in the facade shone forth. |
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| 1923 |
The Letran Cadet Corps and the military band were established.
The Shakespearean Club and the Cervantes Society were founded.
Several sports were organized in Letran, with the school football team emerging as one of the best at the time. |
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| 1938 |
Letran won its first NCAA senior basketball championship. the team was coached by former Philippines Olympian Jacinto Ciria Cruz and skippered by future Philppine Olympian and basketball great, FEly Fajardo. |
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| 1940 |
The newly-contructed annex building, facing the Pasig River, was blessed and inaugurated on 20 October 1940. Bishop Afredo Verzosa, Bishop of Lipa, presided at the rites, with the officers and directors of the Letran Alumni Association standing as sponsors. |
|
| 1942 |
The Japanese Imperial Army converted half of the Letran building into a garrison while the other half was opened for classes. The next school year of 1942 the Japanese took over the whole building and classes were temporarily transfered to the Dominican "Sanctuario" of San Juan del Monte. |
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| 1945 |
While the whole country still lay prostrate and suffering from the battle of reconquet of the Philipines by the Americans, Letran temporarily housed at the Dominican Santuario de Santa Cruz in San Juan del Monte, re-opened its doors to its tudents for regular classes. |
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| 1946 |
Letran returned to its familiar environs in Intramuros. A massive reconstruction program was launched to repair and to restore the Letran Main Building to its pre-war conditions.
Fr. Augusto Antonio, O.P., the first Filipino Letranite to enter the Dominican Order, was assigned to Letran upon the completion of his studies for, and his oirdination to, the priesthood at the Dominican House of Studies in Hong Kong. |
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| 1950 |
Letran's senior basketball team, popularly known as the "Murder, Inc.", became legend, specially after winning the NCAA and the National Collegiate Basketball Championships. The team was coached by Letran alumnus Angel de Leon and captained by Olympian and basketball great, Lauro Mumar. |
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| 1953 |
The new Letran Elementary Building, built on the grounds of the former Santa Catalina College, which has since been acquired by Letran, was blessed and inagurated by Archbishop Rufino J. Santos, Archbishop of Manila. |
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| 1955 |
On November 6 1955, Archbishop Rufino J. Santos, Archbishop of Manila, blessed the new Letran Gymnasium0Auditorium, located former site of the Dominican Procuration within the Santo Domingo complex. |
|
| 1961 |
Fr. Isidro D. Katigbak, O.P at Tiaong, Quezon, was installed as the first Filipino Rector of Letran College.
The four-year course leading to the degree of Bachelor of Science was granted government recognition by the Department of Education. |
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| 1972 |
A swmming pool was constructed on the plot of land in the side of the gymnasium facing the walls of Intramuros. |
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| 1979 |
Letran established an extension school in Calamba, Laguna. Ground-breaking rites for the main building on the Calamba campus were held in February 1969 and classes in the First grade, First year high school and the First Year College were opened in June of the same year. |
|
| 1986 |
Class H.S. 1957 turns over to the Letran Alumni Association the project of the Hall of Great Knights they initiated in 1982 to honor and perpetuate the memory of the illustruous alumni the school had produced. The Hall’s present roster includes Emilio Aguinaldo, Francisco Baltazar, Emilio Jacinto, Jose P. Laurel, Fernando Lopez, Apolinario Mabini,Sergio Osmeña, Jose Panganiban, Liem de la Paz, Marcelo del Pilar, ManuelL. Quezon, Cayetano Arrelano, Jose Burgos, Vicente L. Madrigal, Quintin Paredes, Francisco Ortigas and Juan Sumulong, grandfather of President Cory Aquino.
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| 1993 |
Ground-breaking ceremonies for the new Communications Arts building on Legazpi Street on the western side of the campus, as well as blessing of the newly renovated air-conditioned chapel, the speech laboratory |
