Tree Day began with the Class of 1895, which, on Arbor Day, planted a tree on campus and arranged a special program. The tradition then became to plant the class tree in the freshman year, and in the following years to hold a celebration commemorating the occasion.

Classes continued the tree planting tradition until 1910, when the Class of 1913 instead “adopted” a tree instead of planting a new tree because an appropriate location for a new tree could not be identified. The tradition fell out of favor in the 1930s or 1940s.