In the fall of 1889 a branch of the YMCA was established on the campus of North Carolina Agricultural and Mechanical College (later North Carolina State University).

The Y was a voluntary organization that was controlled by the students under the direction of a general secretary, who was employed with funds subscribed by the members and voted by the Board of Trustees. On December 8, 1905, the Trustees appropriated $300.00 to employ a full-time Y secretary. The first general secretary, E. R. Walton, served for two years. He was succeeded by John W. Bergthold in 1908.

The organization conducted regular Sunday services and Bible study classes, published a monthly paper and a handbook for freshmen and prospective students, and brought carefully chosen and nationally known speakers to the campus. Members of the Y gave programs at neighboring colleges and representatives were sent to the annual Southern Student Conference near Asheville and to various other student volunteer conferences. Other activities and services of the Y included the provision of a game room for students, a barbershop, and the Self-Help Bureau, which helped students secure employment while in college. Then as now, members of this organization met new students at the depot and escorted them to the campus and became the students' servant, friend, and moral guide.