Physical Plant

User Note: Follow the sidewalk until you reach where it connects to the building. Feel free to walk around this area. The parking lot below this area is the former site of the Industrial Education Annex that is pictured below.

The Industrial Arts Building, also known temporarily as the Manual Arts Building, was constructed in 1921 and the departments were moved over from the Eames Mill in 1922. The building contained expanded spaces for the various departments and allowed students to gain real-world experience in auto mechanics and other industrial arts. In addition to these new spaces, this building featured an automobile shop, a woodworking room, and a space for Blacksmithing. As Western continued to expand, the Manual Arts Building adapted to fit its growing needs and continues to serve the university as the Physical Plant.

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Due to the expansion of Western and the growth of departments, a new building was required to house the manual and industrial arts programs. The Manual Arts Building, which was formerly housed in the Eames Mill, was constructed in 1921 and provided many new spaces for the Auto Mechanics Department and industrial arts classes.

The plans for the building were first introduced in 1916 and included three other structures, but World War I limited the number of funds that were available, which resulted in only one being constructed right after the war. The building also featured an automobile shop, a woodworking room, tool rooms, offices, as well as spaces for sheet metal work, Blacksmithing, and welding, as well as classrooms for architectural drafting and automobile repair.

One of the key features of the automobile shop was the overhead trolley system that allowed engines to be carried around and worked on in different spaces throughout the building. The Manual Arts Building continued to serve in this capacity until the 1940s when it was renovated for more classrooms and offices and was renamed the Maintenance Building.

This two-story addition nearly doubled the amount of workspace and area for the university garage. Today, the building is known as the Physical Plant and is home to the university’s transportation services. Although the purpose has changed since the building’s construction, hints of its former use can still be seen in the words “Manual Arts” that are still located above the entrance.

University Libraries. Rep. Campus Building Inventory - Yearly Summary, n.d. 

Carlson, Sharon; Glatz, Jason, WMU Facilities Management. “WMU Campus History” [storymap], https://campus-history.library.wmich.edu/index.html. (Accessed February 17, 2022) 

Knauss, James O. The First Fifty Years: A History of Western Michigan College of Education, 1903-1953. Kalamazoo, MI: Western Michigan College of Education, 1953. 

“Plans Complete for Manual Training Shop.” Western Normal Herald. May 5, 1920. 

“Handsome Manual Arts Building to Be Erected.” Western Normal Herald. August 25, 1920. 

“What They Do in the Auto Shop.” Western Normal Herald. May 5, 1920.