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A Photographic History of Oregon State University

Aerial sign on the roof of the Armory, ca. 1940

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1. Administration Building, ca. 1895
2. Mechanical Hall fire aftermath, September 1898 Mechanical Hall fire aftermath, September 1898. The fire that destroyed Mechanical Hall the night of September 26, 1898 was a devastating, but temporary, setback for OAC. Though classrooms, shops, athletic facilities, and electrical generating facilities were destroyed, the college persevered. The new gymnasium and armory, already under construction, was completed in early 1899. Through the efforts of regent and former legislator John Apperson, state funds quickly were approved for a new mechanical hall. A new powerhouse was completed in 1900, providing a stable source of electricity for the campus. (P101:517)
3. Stock judging pavilion, 1912 Stock judging pavilion, 1912. This facility, designed by John Bennes, was used by the Animal Husbandry Department for the showing of animals and to afford students “an opportunity to examine, score, test, and otherwise study the splendid specimens” of the college stock and those of farmers and breeders. Unfortunately the facility burned a few months after completion due to a malfunctioning woodstove. It was replaced with a similar, but more modest, structure. The recently completed (2012) James E. Oldfield Animal Teaching Center, which has a large demonstration area, includes a number of design elements similar to the 1912 pavilion. (P25:1161)
4. Construction of the temporary war barracks, 1918 Construction of the temporary war barracks, 1918. The implementation of the Students' Army Training Corps (SATC) in 1918 necessitated additional housing for male students. This building was quickly constructed to the west of the Forestry Building (visible to the right) and later used as a dormitory for men (Poling Hall). The dorm rooms held from two to six men, and the basement area included a cafeteria. The dormitory was used until 1928, when a new Men’s Dormitory (now Weatherford Hall) was built on the location. (HC 1342)
5. YMCA, Y Hut, ca. 1920
6. View of the Library Quad and West Campus, ca. 1930
7. Aerial sign on the roof of the Armory, ca. 1940
8. Delivering fuel to the steam plant, ca. 1940 Delivering fuel to the steam plant, ca. 1940. This delivery truck from the Corvallis Lumber Company is unloading wood chips (hogged fuel). The lumber company’s mill was located at the confluence of the Marys and Willamette Rivers in Corvallis, and its mill waste was an important fuel source for the college. Hogged fuel, which also arrived by rail car for many years, was used by the steam plant into the 1970s. (P16:803)
9. Married students at Adair Village housing for veterans, ca. 1946 Married students at Adair Village housing for veterans, ca. 1946. The large number of returning veterans after World War II created a severe shortage of student housing at OSC. As a temporary measure to alleviate part of the shortage, the college utilized part of the former Camp Adair military training cantonment to house returning veterans, many of whom were married. The Adair Village housing, which consisted of 326 units, opened in the fall of 1946. (HC 816 #13)
10. Students walking by Quonset huts, ca. 1946 Students walking by Quonset huts, ca. 1946. Like many colleges and universities, Oregon State experienced a significant increase in student enrollment immediately after World War II. The resulting space challenges were met in a variety ways, including the use of Quonset huts as temporary buildings in many locations on campus. The buildings in this photograph were located on the west side of the Home Economics Building (Milam Hall). Quonsets were developed during the war as all-purpose buildings that could be assembled quickly and in almost any location. (P25:1807)
11. Dearborn Hall, ca. 1950
12. College Playhouse, ca. 1951 College Playhouse, ca. 1951. The old armory and gymnasium building was converted to a playhouse for Oregon State’s excellent theatre program in 1950. It was renamed Mitchell Playhouse in 1961, in memory of C.B. Mitchell, longtime chair of the Speech Dept. and director of the theatre program. The building was used as the playhouse until 1990, when fire safety concerns closed it for that purpose. In 1992 it was restored with gift funds from the Wayne and Gladys Valley Foundation, and reopened as the Gladys Valley Gymnastics Center. (P16:814)
13. Freshman co-ed with new campus street signs, fall 1953
14. Chemical Engineering Building, February 1957
15. Oceanography Building, July 1965
16. Clearing snow on campus, January 1969
17. Crop Science Building, 1981
18. Electrical and Computer Engineering Building, ca. 1988 Electrical and Computer Engineering Building, ca. 1988. Opened in October 1988, it contains a smokestack from the 1909 heating plant that serves as a solar heated air return for the building’s heating system. The building was renamed Owen Hall in 1999, in memory of Professor Thomas Owen, chair of the Electrical and Computer Engineering Dept. and Dean of Engineering from 1990 until his death in 1997. Today it houses the School of Civil and Construction Engineering. (P3, 1989 Beaver Yearbook photos)
19. Industrial Building fire, July 1992 Industrial Building fire, July 1992. The fire destroyed half of this building, including most of OSU Printing & Mailing Services’ facilities and equipment. The losses were valued at $1.9 million for the building and $4 million in printing equipment. The Industrial Building was originally constructed in 1947 to house the Forest Products Lab. The destroyed portion of the building was reconstructed in 1996, and the entire building was renamed Cascade Hall. (P120, Accession 2009:011)

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Contents of this tag:
1. Aerial sign on the roof of the Armory, ca. 1940
2. Delivering fuel to the steam plant, ca. 1940 Delivering fuel to the steam plant, ca. 1940. This delivery truck from the Corvallis Lumber Company is unloading wood chips (hogged fuel). The lumber company’s mill was located at the confluence of the Marys and Willamette Rivers in Corvallis, and its mill waste was an important fuel source for the college. Hogged fuel, which also arrived by rail car for many years, was used by the steam plant into the 1970s. (P16:803)
3. Construction of Quonset Huts, July 1946
4. Marian Stebbinger Playing the Chimes, 1947 Marian Stebbinger playing the chimes, 1947. The chimes, located in Benton Hall, were a gift of the alumni association and could be heard twice daily. In 1957 Oregon State raised funds for a carillon, which was installed in the Memorial Union. For many years the carillon has chimed out the Fight Song and the Alma Mater at 5:00 p.m. each day. The carillon was automated in the 1990s with a digital sound system. (HC 726)
5. Helen Gilkey and Assistants in the Herbarium, ca. 1945 Helen Gilkey and assistants in the Herbarium, ca. 1945. Gilkey, who received her bachelor's and master's degrees from OAC (1907 and 1911), was curator of the herbarium from 1918 to 1951. In 1915 she was the first woman to earn a Ph.D. in botany from the University of California, Berkeley. She also served as professor of botany at Oregon State and was an accomplished botanical illustrator and author, best known for her research on truffles. OSU’s Herbarium was established in the early 1880s. At the time of this photo, the Herbarium was located on the third floor of what is now Strand Agriculture Hall. Today it is located in Cordley Hall, contains more than 405,000 vascular plant, bryophyte, algal and fungal specimens, and is comprised of collections from OSU, the University of Oregon, and Willamette University. (HC 1252)
6. Married students at Adair Village housing for veterans, ca. 1946 Married students at Adair Village housing for veterans, ca. 1946. The large number of returning veterans after World War II created a severe shortage of student housing at OSC. As a temporary measure to alleviate part of the shortage, the college utilized part of the former Camp Adair military training cantonment to house returning veterans, many of whom were married. The Adair Village housing, which consisted of 326 units, opened in the fall of 1946. (HC 816 #13)
7. Students walking by Quonset huts, ca. 1946 Students walking by Quonset huts, ca. 1946. Like many colleges and universities, Oregon State experienced a significant increase in student enrollment immediately after World War II. The resulting space challenges were met in a variety ways, including the use of Quonset huts as temporary buildings in many locations on campus. The buildings in this photograph were located on the west side of the Home Economics Building (Milam Hall). Quonsets were developed during the war as all-purpose buildings that could be assembled quickly and in almost any location. (P25:1807)
8. John H. Hall, ca. 1949 John H. Hall, ca. 1949. Hall (1899-1970) graduated from OAC in 1923 with a bachelor’s degree in business administration. He later graduated from law school and entered politics with his 1932 election to the Oregon House of Representatives. He became speaker of the house in 1947. After the death of Governor Earl Snell and two other officials in a plane crash in 1947, Hall was next in line in succession, and took the oath of office of governor on October 30, 1947. He was challenged in the 1948 Republican primary by another Oregon Stater, Douglas McKay, who had been a close friend of Snell. McKay defeated Hall and went on to win the general election in fall 1948. He later served as a district court judge. (HC 527)
9. Delta Zeta Sorority Members on a Jeep, 1943
10. Army Specialized Training Program Students Marching Through the Memorial Union Quad, ca. 1944
11. Francois Gilfillan and His Family at Home, ca. 1940
12. Book Orders for Veterans Ready for Distribution in the Memorial Union Ballroom, ca. 1947