The conference released a report: We commit ourselves ... heartily to the building up within the bounds of the conference of an institution of learning which shall by its ample facilities ... command the respect and patronage of Methodist people within the bounds of the territory ... and so by united and prayerful efforts advance to the establishment of a school of learning which shall be a praise in all the land.Two cities vied for the location of the school: Port Townsend and Tacoma.

The beginnings of the school were marked by moral conviction: students were warned against intoxicating liquors, visits to saloons, gambling, tobacco use, and obscene drawings or writings on the college grounds.

The character of the school changed dramatically during the presidency of Edward H. Todd (1913–1942), who worked tirelessly to bring financial and academic stability.

With this money, the campus moved in 1924[9] to its current location in the residential North End of Tacoma, with five buildings, setting a stylistic tone for the institution.

With the advent of President Susan Resneck Pierce (1992–2003), the law school was promptly sold to Seattle University, in a move that was calculated to focus the institution's resources on its undergraduate campus.

Collins Memorial Library and four academic buildings were renovated, and Wyatt Hall was constructed to house the growing class and office space needs of the Humanities Department.

Puget Sound's president from 2003 to early 2016 was Ronald R. Thomas—affectionately called "Ron Thom" by many students—a scholar of Victorian literature, and the former vice-president of Trinity College.

[10] Thompson Hall, home of the sciences at the institution, underwent a major renovation, including the construction of a new wing (Harned Hall, completed 2006) on the building's western side against Union Avenue and extensive renovations to the current wings and courtyard to allow for upgraded labs and facilities.

The hall is home for 135 students, and includes a seminar room, four studies, and an event/meeting space for approximately 150 people, accommodating special events, guest lectures, performances and more.

[16][17] The campus is located in North Tacoma, Washington in a primarily residential setting a few minutes' walk from the Proctor and the Sixth Avenue district.

The building features labs for biology, geology, chemistry, environmental science, and physics, a 10,000-square-foot (930 m2) courtyard with a crystalline glass gazebo in the center, a Foucault pendulum designed by Alan Thorndike, as well as Gray whale skeleton named Willy.

It houses the English, History, Foreign Languages & Literature, Politics & Government, Philosophy, Honors, Science Technology & Society,[20] Classics, and Religion departments.

Collins Memorial Library[22] houses over 400,000 books and over 130,000 periodicals, is a partial federal government repository, and has substantial microform holdings.

In 2000, a major renovation brought new technology and media resources into the Library's spaces, making it one of the most popular campus gathering places for students.

At 42,500 square feet (3,950 m2), the center provides the resources and flexibility needed to support new areas of study in the fields of health and behavioral sciences.

[34] The guide cites the college's dynamic curriculum, close interaction between students and professors, ideal location, and enduring success of its alumni as qualities that set it apart from other schools.

[37] The institution sponsors study abroad programs in Argentina, Australia, Austria, Chile, China, Costa Rica, Denmark, England, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, New Zealand, the Pacific Rim, Scotland, Spain, Taiwan, and Wales.

Every three years a group of fifteen to twenty-five students are selected to spend two semesters traveling, studying, and researching in eight Asian countries.

[39] Over the program's 40-year history students have visited: Mongolia, People's Republic of China, Japan, South Korea, India, Nepal, Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Fiji, Australia, New Zealand, Iran, and Yugoslavia.

The teams' mascot is "Grizz the Logger," a costumed student dressed as an anthropomorphic brown bear wearing stereotypical lumberjack attire and carrying a small axe.

[citation needed] The club has achieved regional and national success over the past three seasons under coach Mark Sullivan.

In 2012 the club was ranked 10th in the nation for small college rugby and traveled to Cal Maritime University in Vallejo, California for the regional tournament.

[citation needed] In a football game against Linfield University on October 21, 2023, linebacker Lily Godwin became the first woman to record an unassisted tackle in the history of the NCAA.

[49] Celebrating the milestone of 125 years in the community, Tacoma Mayor Marilyn Strickland declared March 17, 2013, to be "University of Puget Sound Day.

[citation needed] The original hatchet was finally returned to President Ronald Thomas in 2008 by two anonymous alumni and was displayed at Homecoming.

The institution is one of just five independent colleges in the Northwest granted a charter by Phi Beta Kappa, which claims to be the nation's most prestigious academic honor society.

Most recently, in the spring of 2010, MTV honored KUPS with the national title of Best College Radio Station at the MTVu Woodie Awards.

[56] The Trail is an independent student-run organization that provides Puget Sound students, faculty, staff, and the local community with a credible weekly newspaper that serves as a comprehensive source of information, entertainment and discourse relevant to its readership.

Crosscurrents also features a guest artist or writer in each issue- usually a notable person from the pacific northwest who is interviewed about their work.

[citation needed] "Wetlands" is a student-organized magazine focusing on sexual exploration and gender expression to encourage inclusive and open-minded conversations across the campus community.