Dooley was first mentioned in an 1899 article printed in the school newspaper, "Phoenix", titled "Reflections of a Skeleton". The article was purportedly written by a skeleton in a science lab who complained of his dull and silent existence observing the comings and goings of the students. In 1901, the Dooley mythology resurfaced, this time in a second editorial where he claims to have been the son of a wealthy Virginia planter who fought in the Revolutionary War and later died from alcohol abuse. In 1941, Dooley began appearing physically on campus, starting the tradition known as "Dooley's Week", when he has free rein to let students out of classes. Today, Dooley makes frequent appearances at social functions and other Oxford events, where he passes a message for a designated student to read to the student body. These messages relate to events on campus, ranging from critical rebukes of misdeeds, to praise for individual student accomplishments.