The California and Oregon Trails Memorial

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An auto tour map of the trail in Missouri and Kansas

A large boulder near the Chi Omega Fountain on the University of Kansas campus features a plaque and medallion commemorating the settlers who embarked westward on the Oregon Trail seeking lands and a new life. The trail began in Independence, Missouri, and passed through part of what is now the campus. The medallion depicts a family riding a wagon pulled by oxen. Hundreds of thousands of people used the trail from the 1830s through the late 1860s. Upon the completion of the transcontinental railroad in 1869, the use of the trail declined.  

California and Oregon Trails Memorial

This short walk through the heart of the University of Kansas campus includes stops at some of the most iconic campus landmarks. To create a relatively short loop that starts at Potter Lake and ends near the Chi Omega Fountain, this tour does not include all of the campus buildings or landmarks, such as Allen Fieldhouse and Memorial Stadium. However, these landmarks can also be found in Clio. Rock Chalk!

Construction of Potter Lake was first offered to W.W. Gilmore of Lawrence, who was contracted to build a dam for $3,250. The dam and the accompanying spillways and bridge were supposed to be completed by the first of May in 1911. There are slightly varying dimensions of the size of the original pond. One account from the Mount Oread Historic fund estimates that the lake was roughly two acres in size. At the same time, the archival material at KU suggests that the Damn and the connected lake were closer to 400ft long and 60ft wide, roughly 24,000 square feet or just over half an acre. It is hard to say who is correct, but regardless it is likely that the Initially Potter Lake has since shrank in size. However, both accounts agree that the lake's deepest depth was between 14-16ft. The initial purpose of the lake, to extinguish a fire that broke out on the campus, was accomplished by an electric pump and motor system that boasted being able to secure more than 1000 gallons of water per minute in the case of a fire. The pump house built alongside the lake was made with red stone bricks and a limestone interior. Currently, the pumphouse sits unused, filling its openings with concrete. Potter lake has been dredged twice, first in 1958 to deal with progressively worsening pollution and water quality and a second time in 2011 to honor a century of the lake.Potter Lake has served the KU student body for over a century, conforming to whatever function students could conceive. To commemorate its construction, the KU band performed at its opening ceremony, which was followed by a plethora of water sports. The infamous Athletic Director, James Naismith, attended the lake's opening and organized the athletic festivities, including swimming races, log rolling, tub and canoe racing, and a diving contest. Naismith proceeded to organize annual celebrations on Potter Lake corresponding with commencement. In 1914 a diving board briefly lived at the lake before water quality made such activities questionable for one's health. Chancellor Lindley banned swimming in the Lake in 1924 because of the health concerns that arose from it. However, Potter Lake continued to serve the community. A seven-hole golf course that has now been reclaimed by nature was built on campus with Potter Lake as its centerpiece. In the 1990s, the lake had recovered enough to fill with fish life. Students fished the lake in their free time. One KU student John Trager and an amateur fisherman caught a 41-inch, 25-pound flathead catfish. In 1997 and the year that followed, students organized a “Floating Flicks” night. A quartet of King-sized bedsheets coated in a reflective material drifted atop Styrofoam until it was pinned via ropes. This contraption of a screen was appropriate for titles such as “The Creature from the Black Lagoon,” “Abyss,” and “Deliverance” to be projected on top of.           The Lake also proved to be a useful classroom for professors and students who learned from the lake just as much as it was a place for relaxation. In 2000 the design department had students construct jewelry that was buoyant. A class-tested their creations atop Potter Lake by having their art float out while carrying candles. Biology department students found Potter Lake to be a helpful lab. During its initial emptying in the 1950s, biology students hoped the lake would serve as a living zoological laboratory. Students hoped that fixing the pollution problem would let wildlife thrive in the pond and the surrounding land. Biologists also played a role in the second dredging of the lake, when they advised putting marshland grasses on the perimeter of the lake to reduce flooding and promote healthy ecological growth.           For all its academic and leisurely functions, Potter Lake also has served as a spiritual and moral center for the student zeitgeist. Like many campuses across the country, the KU campus erupted in anti-war fervor in the tumultuous 60s and 70s. Amid the sit-ins and fires that captured the campus's focus, Potter Lake also had its own role to play. A year before Nixon took office, in 1967, playing on the idea of a sit-in, Potter Lake housed a “Human-be-in.” The event aimed to critique the technocratic systems in America that were dehumanizing. The natural scenes of Potter Lake contrasted the rigid ways in which ‘the man’ funneled young people into the ‘real world’ without choice or agency. The event commented on how students could be drafted and have their lives disrupted and how these systems were counter to the civil rights movement, which students had organized in favor of.On November 5th, 2022, KU defeated Oklahoma State 37-16 and won bowl game eligibility. Post-game, the student body, in addition to fans in attendance, pulled out the field goal post and hauled it into the nearby Potter Lake. The students celebrating KUs bowl eligibility for the first time in more than a decade joined a long tradition of adding a field goal to Potter Lake. Field goals have entered the lake at least four other times against Nebraska, WVU, Mizzou, and K-State.           Potter lake also has its fair share of tragedies. Mere days before its completion in 1911, an engineering student, Leonard Ritchey, and a group of friends decided to swim across the new lake. Ritchey had a history of weak cardiovascular health and began struggling to stay afloat. Ritchey sank beneath the water, and his friends could not lift Ritchey to the surface. The swim captain, James Daniels, was telephoned and managed to bring Ritchey ashore. However, because Daniels arrived nearly half an hour after Ritchey sank, recitation did not yield any positive results. Ritchey was the first of seven students who would eventually meet their ends in Potter Lake. Almost exactly a year after Ritchey’s death, Ernest Van Dyke another engineering student, drowned after diving into the lake.

Potter Lake began construction in 1910 and was dedicated in 1911 to State Senator and former member of the board of regents for the University of Kansas Thomas M. Potter. Potter lake now sits on the northern slope of memorial drive and has been a fixture in KU's landscape for more than a century. The lake has been reduced significantly in size as some initial measurements of the lake estimated it to be 2 acres across, between 16-18th deep, and hold roughly four million gallons of water.

Potter Lake 

The first push for the construction of a campus carillon tower came from Olin Templin, the namesake of campus residence hall Templin Hall. Templin had graduated in 1886, and in 1890 returned to establish what are now the philosophy, sociology, and psychology departments. Later, he would serve as the Executive Secretary of the KU Endowment Association.Templin wished to construct a carillon tower to honor the pioneers of the city of Lawrence, particularly those who suffered during the Civil War. He secured a site, funding, and more for the construction of the carillon tower, but at his death in 1943 his dream was unfulfilled, and plans for the construction faded. Templin’s dream was resurrected by the KU Memorial Association Committee, who picked the Campanile out of around 17 proposals of ways to memorialize those who served from the University. The tower began construction in 1950, using Kansas limestone, and commissioning bells from the John Taylor bell foundry in England. Dedicated on May 27, 1951, the East and West walls of the Memorial Room, at the base of the tower, have the names of the 277 Jayhawks who lost their lives in World War II engraved into the Virginia Greenstone. The inscription in the frieze inside the Memorial Room says, “Free Government does not bestow repose upon its citizens but sets them in the vanguard of battle to defend the liberty of everyman.” The South door’s bronze panels depict war, and the North door’s depict both the history of Kansas, and the state’s and University’s ideals.For students currently attending KU, the Campanile is an aspirational figure. To walk through the memorial room is a goal achieved upon graduation, and the legend that those who would do so beforehand would fail to do so on time preserves the significance of the act.

Built to honor the 277 students who died in World War II, the University of Kansas dedicated this Memorial Campanile on May 27, 1951. Inside the Campanile is a carillon, an instrument of 53 large bells which reside at the top of the tower. During KU’s graduation ceremony, students march through the opening of the Campanile on their way to Memorial Stadium where commencement takes place. Popular student legend says that if a student should walk under the Campanile prior to their graduation, they will fail to graduate in four years.

World War II Memorial Campanile and Carillon

The origins of the museum date back to 1917 when Kansas City art collector Sallie Casey Thayer donated her art collection, which numbered 7,500 works of art from Europe and Asia, to the university. Her goal was for the university to establish a museum in so that this collection could be studied. It took some time but in 1928 the university established the museum in Spooner Hall, using the collection as a foundation on which to grow the museum. Spooner Hall was renovated to house this collection which grew to the point that by the late 1960s, it was clear that a new space was needed. Local philanthropist Helen Spencer donated $4.6 million to fund the building of a new museum, which was designed in the Neo-Classical style by Robert Jenks, a Kansas City native and graduate of the University of Kansas. The collection grew again in 2007 with the closing of the anthropology museum which resulted in an additional 8500 objects. A 2015-2016 renovation included more modern teaching spaces and an entrance that brings more light to the redesigned lobby which can host a variety of events. A gift of $3 million from Margaret Silva in 2022 will support the museum's Arts Research Integration prorogram.

Originally located in Spooner Hall, the University of Kansas's Spencer Museum of Art has been located in this purpose-built structure since 1978 thanks to a $4.6 million donation from Helen Foresman Spencer. The museum holds the most comprehensive art museum in Kansas with a collection of 45,000 works of art and cultural objects ranging from ancient cultures to the present. The collections include paintings, sculptures, prints, drawings, furniture, ceramics, and photographs. The museum is known for its robust collections of Native American objects along with Medieval art; European and American paintings, sculpture, and prints; along with Japanese Edo-period painting and prints, and 20th-century Chinese paintings. The museum houses 8,500 ethnographic objects from the former Kansas Museum of Anthropology, which closed in 2007. The building is also home to the Murphy Library of Art and Architecture and the Kress Foundation Department of Art History.

Spencer Museum of Art

For decades, the Kansas Memorial Union has served as a place for campus organizations, students, and faculty to gather and share ideas. The Union was established as a memorial to honor the KU students and alumni who lost their lives during World War I. Construction of the building began in the 1920s and was finished in the 1930s, although several building additions and renovations have been completed (2). During the Vietnam War, the University of Kansas experienced anti-war protests and conflicts over racial inequality. This tense campus environment eventually affected the Union.Some anti-war protests at KU during 1969 and 1970 were peaceful, with faculty and members of the Lawrence community demonstrating alongside students . Other protests were more destructive. In the spring of 1969, protesters broke into Memorial Stadium and occupied the field during Chancellor Wescoe’s ROTC review, forcing the cancellation of the event. Amid these anti-war protests at KU, the Black Student Union (BSU) also used activism to express their views on racial inequality. In February of 1970, members of the group dumped six thousand copies of the campus newspaper, the University Daily Kansan, into Potter Lake to protest the discontinuation of BSU’s publication, Harambee. Days later, BSU also drafted a list of demands for changes in the university, which included more African American faculty, greater numbers of African American students, and the creation of a new department dedicated to African studies. These events on KU’s campus provide local context for the wider struggles that were taking place across the United States at the time and explain some of the reasons for campus tensions. In this atmosphere of political activism and discontent, William Towns explains that Lawrence experienced “racial confrontations, student protests, bomb threats, arson, and incidents of sniper fire directed at firefighters” during a period of unrest in April of 1970. On the night of April 20, a suspected firebomb ignited a blaze that tore through the top levels of the Union and caused a portion of the roof to collapse. Fire crews and students spent hours fighting to control the fire. In the aftermath of the blaze, newspapers like the Lawrence Journal-World praised the actions of the students who risked their safety to assist the fire crews. Students carried hoses and tools up the stairs to firefighters. Some ventured as high as the roof, which was more dangerous than other parts of the building because the students would have to make their way back down through the upper levels, where the fire had started. Other students worked to move furniture and artwork out of the fire’s path. However, some of the art could not be moved, so students used blankets to protect the works as much as possible. When the situation became too dangerous, the firefighters ordered the students out of the building. The fire was contained by the early hours of April 21. After the flames were extinguished, the public gained a more comprehensive view of the fire and its consequences. Except for a small number of firemen who suffered from smoke inhalation, there were no injuries reported as a result of the fire. University of Kansas officials announced that the blaze had ruined about 40,000 square feet of space in the upper floors while water damage affected the lower floors. Some estimates placed the losses as high as one million dollars. Officials discovered “accelerant and matchbooks strung together” close to the Pine Room and determined arson to be the cause of the fire. The firebombing and civil unrest in the city prompted local officials to ask Governor Robert Docking to impose a curfew on Lawrence that would last four days. As a consequence of the unrest during this time, a rumor center was established so that students, their families, and others in the community could have access to accurate information about the situation in Lawrence. This rumor center eventually became KU Info, a resource that provides information services for the University of Kansas.In the days following the event, students and faculty developed various theories surrounding the identity of the arsonist or group of arsonists. Chancellor Laurence Chalmers believed that individuals within Lawrence set the fire in order “to take advantage of the tension for their own purposes.” The president of the student body, David Awbrey, believed that entities from outside of the community sought to inflame the unrest in Lawrence by planting the firebomb. Some were concerned about the possibility of other threats. In the coming nights, students and faculty members volunteered to watch over campus buildings as a preventative measure.  Several other events occurred within hours of the Union fire. African American students had seen their demands for curriculum changes and more equal representation in school activities tabled at a USD 497 board meeting. Following the meeting, emergency crews responded to reports of vandalism at Lawrence High School, finding fire damage and broken windows. The fire chief, F.C. Sanders, said that firemen had been shot at while responding to the call at the high school. Windows were shot out of several local businesses as well as the Santa Fe Depot (5). The timing of these events led some to believe that they might be connected to the fire in the Union. Some blamed minority groups for the Union fire, but there is a lack of conclusive evidence as to who started the blaze (7). Towns notes that “there was no shortage of possible suspects in that social climate of anti-war activism, racial confrontation, and anarchy.” The exact reason for the firebomb remains unknown (7). Towns suggests that university leadership may have purposely decided not to pursue charges in hopes of containing the unrest. No one was ever arrested for the burning of the Union, and the statute of limitations for the crime has expired.

On the evening of April 20, 1970, the Kansas Memorial Union sustained severe damage despite the efforts of firefighters and students to contain the flames. Officials determined that the fire was set intentionally and was caused by an explosion on the sixth floor. The fire took place during a turbulent spring in Lawrence, as many students were protesting the draft and the Vietnam War while racial tension also contributed to the country’s disquiet. These factors resulted in instances of civil unrest and protests at the University of Kansas and other educational institutions, but also a handful of incidents of arson and other forms of property destruction.

Burning of the Kansas Memorial Union, April 20, 1970

Despite containing a department of the University of Kansas, the land Myers and later Smith Hall occupied was not owned by KU until 1998. During Smith Hall’s construction in the ‘60s both the land and building were owned by the Kansas Bible Chair. The Bible Chair existed outside the University of Kansas, teaching courses on Christianity and religious history writ large. 	The Bible Cair was founded in 1901 by the Women’s Board of Missions of the Christian Church. Chancellor Strong “thought the Bible Chair a nearly ideal solution to the question of religion in connection with state educational institutions.” The Chancellor’s view was so positive that he and the Board of Regents took upon themselves to solicit private donors for the creation of Myers Hall, which was completed in 1906. The Bible Chair solicited funding for the construction of Smith Hall, and through the donations of affiliated denominations, private individuals, and private groups the building was completed. Donor Irma I. Smith gave the largest donation towards the project, and was therefore awarded the honor of being the building’s namesake. 	Architect Charles Marshall was hired to construct Smith Hall, which did in the mid century modern style. Mid Century modernism is characterized by minimal decoration, clean lines, natural shapes, and large windows. Such characteristics are all over Smith Hall, see the subtle crosses along the top stripe of the building, the large windows which peer outside, and its overall smooth figure. The most arresting features of Smith Hall’s design are the two prominent pieces of art, the statue of Moses and stained glass window. Charles Marshall designed the stained glass window titled “Burning Bush”, and Elden Tefft, sculptor and KU professor, designed the statue of Moses. Each piece represents a key element of the University of Kansas’s crest.	The Kansas Board of Regents listed Smith Hall on its list of buildings to be demolished in 2023, with costs estimated at around $650,000. A 2020 study by the Board of Regents found that necessary renovations would cost around $860,000. After the announcement of plans to destroy Smith Hall in 2023, a community response group arose, calling for the preservation and refurbishment of the building. In response to community backlash, KU Chancellor Douglas Girod placed the decision of demolition on hold until the release of the University’s Campus Master Plan.

Dedicated October 8, 1967, Smith Hall contains KU’s religious studies department, the William J. Moore library, classrooms, and faculty offices. Smith Hall’s location was formerly occupied by Myers Hall, a privately owned building that housed the Bible Chair. In the 1960’s private groups and Christian denominations raised funds for the construction of a building to replace Myers Hall. Smith Hall was among the list of buildings described by the Board of Regents as “mission critical” to demolish in 2023, however its demolition has been placed on hold, and will be decided in the University of Kansas’s unreleased campus ‘Master Plan’.

Smith Hall, University of Kansas

By 1920 the building became overcrowded and plans for a new library were developed. In 1924, a new library was built. Two years later, Spooner Hall became the Spooner-Thayer Museum of Art, housing the newly acquired collection of Sallie Casey Thayer. Later renamed the University of Kansas Museum of Art, the collection moved into the Spencer Museum of Art in 1978. Then, from 1979 to 2002, the building served as the KU Museum of Anthropology. Now, it houses the ethnographic and archaeological collections as well as The Commons, a university event space.

Spooner Hall was built in 1893-94 as the University of Kansas' first library. The money for its construction came from William Spooner, who wanted to construct the university's first purpose-built library and also a new chancellor's home for his nephew Francis H. Snow, who served as chancellor from 1890-1901 (Francis was his niece's husband). Spooner Hall was designed by Henry Van Brunt in the Romanesque Revival style and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1974. Today, the building houses anthropology department's collections.

Spooner Hall, University of Kansas

Danforth Chapel’s creation dates back to a September 1944 meeting between Chancellor Deane Malott and William H. Danforth, a founder of Ralston Purina. Danforth was a strong believer in a life centered on education that balanced attributes like physical fitness with faith and positive character traits. Danforth subsidized the construction of two dozed chapels on American college campuses through his Danforth Foundation. As Danforth himself put it, “I have an idea that our campuses are ready right now for a spiritual awakening; so I don’t think we should necessarily wait until after the war is over.” Danforth’s dream of spiritual awakening aligned with Chancellor Malott’s goals, who wished to cultivate "a Christian spirit" on the University of Kansas’s campus. At the time, this phrase that Malott and others used to support the construction of the chapel referred to an attitude of humility and service that reflected Danforth's thoughts on the role of faith in a well-balanced life.The proposed chapel was designed by KU graduate Edward W. Tanner, who in lieu of payment asked that the building’s design would be dedicated in honor of his mother Harriett A. Tanner. Danforth liked the proposed building and pledged $5,000 from the foundation towards its construction. The remaining $25,000 of local funding was secured by alumni, faculty, students, and friends of the University.The construction of the chapel would have faced wartime lack of labor had it not been for German prisoners held in nearby Camp Lawrence. Paid between $.80 and $1.40 a day, prisoners laid the foundation of the building. Conveniently for the builders, several of the prisoners had been stonemasons prior to the war.After the chapel's completion, Danforth quickly became a wedding venue for students and alumni. Two months after the chapel's opening, on June 17, 1946, seven Jayhawk couples were married. However, they were not the first people bound in holy matrimony upon the premises. On March 20, 1946, 13 days before Danforth Chapel’s dedication, a young couple were married in the building.Danforth Chapel has continued to serve as a venue for marriages, and in 2007 $850,000 was spent adding space to the building and completing other renovations. Reflecting pluralistic changes on campus and the society it serves, the chapel has moved towards an interfaith, nondenominational place of reflection. Young Jayhawks who enter are still encouraged by the inscription at the entrance which wishes that, “those who enter may acquire the spiritual power to aspire nobly, adventure daringly, serve humbly.”

Dedicated on April 2, 1946, this nondenominational campus chapel is open for all who desire a moment of quiet meditation. The chapel was constructed towards the end of World War II using German POW labor from Camp Lawrence. Danforth Chapel has shifted from its Christian origin into an interfaith space, a reflection of larger changes at this and other universities since the postwar period. One of the most iconic campus landmarks, Danforth Chapel has become a sought-after venue for weddings among generations of University of Kansas alumni since its 1946 dedication.

Danforth Chapel, University of Kansas

Prior to the construction of Green (Lippincott) Hall in 1904, the University of Kansas law school moved frequently. Under the leadership of their dear dean James Woods ‘Uncle Jimmy’ Green, the school of law bounced from old Fraser Hall a building known as old North College, and then Blake Hall. In 1904, the Regents provided $50,000 to support the construction of a law school. The building was named Green Hall after a 1905 petition of law students to the Board of Regents.In the postwar period, Green Hall saw overcrowding which was finally addressed with the construction of New Green Hall which opened for classes on October 17, 1977. The former Green Hall was renamed Lippincott Hall after former chancellor Joshua Lippincott. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1974 and today holds KU’s Wilcox Classics museum, Indigenous studies program, and applied English program.

What is today Lippincott Hall was originally Green Hall and named in honor of inaugural law school dean James Woods Green who is immortalized in the statue at the front entrance. The building was constructed to accommodate a law school that had been using several buildings and saw increased enrollment required them. Construction on Green Hall began in 1904, and the building was dedicated on November 3, 1905. The building was rechristened Lippincott Hall in 1977 when the law school to the new Green Hall. The building is on the National Register of Historic Places and contains the Wilcox Classics Museum.

Lippincott Hall

James Woods Green was the well-liked first head of the University of Kansas Department of Law, Therefore, when the Department of Law became the School of Law in 1899, he was made the School’s first dean. Green served the University of Kansas from 1878 to his death, on Nov. 4, 1919. After Green’s death, a group of former students, alumni, and friends formed the James Woods Green memorial association, to find a way of commemorating his life. Terrence J. Madden, a member of the association, wrote on the subject in the December, 1920 issue of the Graduate Magazine,<blockquote>In the heart of every alumnus of old K.U. is the sentiment that the memory of Uncle Jimmie Green may never die. To perpetuate it we must erect on the campus near Green Hall a memorial that will not only symbolize but idealize his life. To this end the James Woods Green Memorial Association has been organized…We have selected Daniel Chester French, who, in the art of portraying personality, is the foremost sculptor of the world today.</blockquote>	Daniel Chester French, the sculptor of the famous Abraham Lincoln statue in Washington, DC, declined one request, but eventually accepted the commission on the condition that Green be depicted alongside a student. French chose to model the student on Alfred C. Alford, who was the first KU graduate killed in the Spanish American war. Upon visiting the University of Kansas’s campus to survey the location and consider the commission, French had this to say about the stories he heard of Green, “[I have] never seen such love for a man — unless it be in the case of Abraham Lincoln.” The statue was dedicated June 9, 1924, and though not in front of law’s home at KU, it remains a reminder of the life and legacy of Uncle Jimmy Green.

At the front of Lippincott Hall stands this statue, dedicated in 1924, depicting James Green and a student. James “Uncle Jimmy” Green was the esteemed first dean of the University of Kansas School of Law. After his death in 1919, a group of former students and friends sought a means to memorialize him, commissioning an architect in 1920. Uncle Jimmy’s statue was placed in front of, at that time, Green Hall, the residence of the University of Kansas School of Law. In 1977, the School of Law relocated to its present location in new Green Hall, leaving Uncle Jimmy and his student in front of the rechristened Lippincott Hall. The statue of a professor and student is the only one of its kind on any campus, and has become one of the iconic symbols of the University of Kansas.

Jimmy Green Statue

Construction on Fraser Hall began in March 1965 and the building cost $2.2; its size of 96,000 square feet is more than twice that of the beloved 1872 building whose name it retained, which was located about 50 feet west. Ulysses S. Grant became the first U.S. president to visit the University of Kansas and as might be expected, his visit included a tour of the recently opened Old Fraser Hall (known then as University Hall).

The current Fraser Hall opened in 1965 and remains the iconic symbol of the central campus with its twin towers sitting on the second highest point of the campus and commanding the skyline of Mount Oread. At the time of its completion in 1873, the original Fraser Hall (then known simply as University Hall) was purported to be the largest educational building in the United States. Old Fraser was demolished in 1965 despite a strong protest movement.

Fraser Hall

Monument to early white pioneers in Kansas. Sculpted by Frederick Hibbard, it depicts a white man working with a shovel. Physician and real estate speculator Simeon Bell purchased this sculpture, originally called "The Corn Planter," at the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair. He donated it to the University of Kansas in hopes that it would help future generations understand the challenges that early Kansas settlers faced. It remained in storage until 1916, when it became the first work of statuary installed on that campus. It has been moved several times as the campus has changed.

The Pioneer statue

When the University of Kansas opened its doors in 1866, the first library collections were held in the same location where all faculty offices and classes were located-- Old North, the only building on campus. The literary offerings were modest but soon expanded following the construction of Old Fraser Hall in 1872. In 1894, a donation by businessman William B. Spooner who was also Chancellor Snow's uncle, allowed the University to construct Spooner Hall. This freestanding library offered five times more space. As the University expanded its programs and degrees, including PhD programs, the library expanded is collection and plans were made to construct a larger main library.In the spring of 1923, construction began on Watson Library and the state legislature allocated $250,000 for the purpose. The building was named after Carrie Watson, the longest-serving University librarian at that time with a career that lasted from 1887 to 1921. The library was opened for student use on September 11, 1924. Between 1938 and 1963, there were five structural additions to Watson Library. The result was a somewhat maze-like building from the perspective of students and librarians alike.In 1978, the legislature approved the first phase of what would become a $6.2 million dollar long-term plan to revitalize Watson Library. With the completion of Anschutz Library in 1989, along with other specialized libraries on campus like Art and Architecture, Music and Dance, and the Law Library, Watson was able to offer more spaces for students and faculty.

Named after university librarian Carrie Watson, who served the University of Kansas from 1887 to 1921, construction of this library began in the spring of 1923 and the building was dedicated on September 11, 1924. Watson replaced Spooner Hall as the University of Kansas’s main library. The 1920s saw substantial growth and soon the new library could not accommodate their growing collection or student body. Successive additions, renovations, and remodels added space, along with the construction of other libraries. In 1989, Anschutz Library was constructed to hold the University's science and engineering collections.

Watson Library

What began as a 7:45 am alarm became students' best friend upon a 1912 recommendation from Chancellor Strong that classes be shortened to 50 minutes, as opposed to 55, and the whistle blow the end for each period. The following reasoning was published in the February 26, 1912 issue of the University Daily Kansan, “The whistle will do all the work. One blast of six seconds at the end of the hour and two of three seconds each at the beginning of the recitation will remove all excuse for tardiness on the part of student or instructor.” An admirable goal, though perhaps an overly optimistic one.The idea was generally liked, passing Council approval and coming into effect on March 25, 1912. It turns out that all excuses for tardiness were not removed, and what ensued was a yearlong battle between students and faculty. Many professors would continue to lecture past the point of whistling, refusing to let their students leave the classroom. Professors who continuously participated in such delays had their names published on the University Daily Kansan's front page, an attempt to shame them into compliance. However, professors were not the only guilty party, and their complaints that the last few minutes of classes were filled mostly with wriggling in seats and impatiently looking at watches shows that perhaps naught much has changed in the last hundred or so years.

Walking along Jayhawk Boulevard during the semester, it is a common occurrence to see freshmen leaping out of their shoes at the whistling of “Big Tooter.” For those not adapted to the noisy announcement of class times ending, the sound can come as quite a shock. Originally used as a morning alarm for students, on March 25, 1912 the steam whistle attached to KU’s power plant became a starter pistol for students ready to race out of classrooms across campus. On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays “Big Tooter” erupts at 10 till; Tuesdays and Thursdays every hour and a half, with two off for lunch between 12:15-2:15.

"Big Tooter" The KU Steam Whistle

Former Kansas state architect John Haskell did not design Bailey Hall with an intention for splendor.1&nbsp;As time passed, however, this building housed a number of people and academic departments iconic to the University of Kansas. These icons, throughout time, lent Bailey Hall their status as they diligently toiled in its walls. In so many ways, thanks to the successes of those people and departments, Bailey Hall stands as an iconography of sorts, a visible monument to those who called it home. That list includes Professor E. H. S. Bailey and the Chemistry Department, the School of Education, and most recently, the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. After construction completed in 1900, then-named Chemistry Hall served as the newest home for the chemistry department. The building "replaced KU's first chemistry building, which had been designed for seventy-five students and was soon overcrowded."2 Bailey Hall rectified those issues, giving the chemistry department enough room to expand as needed, as well as, at the time, the "best&nbsp;practical conditions for chemical and pharmaceutical work, according to modern methods.”3&nbsp;As KU was one of the first to invest in this sort of research, Bailey Hall's top-notch resources allowed for their program to attain national distinctions.4 Chemistry Hall at first had no resplendent historically significant person, nor wealthy donor, on which&nbsp;to base its heritage. For the first few years of its existence, it merely went by the simple name of "Chemistry Building. Only after years of being informally known as "Bailey's Barn"&nbsp;was it officially "christened as Bailey Chemistry Laboratory."5&nbsp;During this time, a number of scientific breakthroughs were made; "perhaps the most lastingly significant achievement to come out of "Bailey's Barn" was the 1905 discovery of helium in natural gas by KU chemistry professors Hamilton P. Cady and David F. McFarland."6 In 1935, "Bailey's Barn" would officially be named after the famed professor, celebrating both his achievements in chemistry and social contributions to KU. The 1950s would signal some significant changes for "Bailey's Barn." In 1954, the Chemistry Department was moved to yet another new home in newly constructed Malott Hall. Soon after, the building underwent over $600,000 in renovations--12 times its original cost!7 After renovations were completed in 1956, the School of Education called Bailey home, and would for another 44 years. Its current inhabitants--departments from the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences--moved in during the 2000 academic year. Now, Bailey is home to Communication Studies, African and African American Studies, American Studies, Humanities, and a number of other important social scientific/humanistic departments.8 Shortly after this move, its historical significance was recognized by both the state of Kansas and the nation. In 2001, the Kansas Historical Registry and the National Register of Historic Places recognized Bailey Hall.9&nbsp;These registries highlighted the importance of Chemistry Hall's storied past. Even though Haskell's Romanesque design was never meant to turn heads, the people that have inhabited this space, the accomplishments they have made, and the national recognition it has gained certainly will.&nbsp;

Constructed in 1900, this building was first the home of the University of Kansas' Chemistry Department. It is the namesake of famed University of Kansas professor of chemistry E. H. S. Bailey, formally attaining that status in 1935 according to University of Kansas historical record. Bailey is most well-known for developing the "Rock Chalk Jayhawk" chant.

The Chemistry department has long since vacated the building. In its place, departments with a focus in humanities and social sciences moved in. The building entered the Register of Kansas Historical Places and the National Register of Historic Places in 2001. 

Bailey Hall

Strong Hall was imagined as part of KU’s first campus master plan. In 1904 the Board of Regents commissioned Kansas City architect George E. Kessler to create “a comprehensive plan for the University’s physical development.” Kessler proposed a beautiful Mount Oread with a massive administration building at the center of its groves and pathways. To design this central administrative building, the University hired St Louis architecture firm Montrose Pallen McArdle. McArdle envisioned the building, which developed into Strong Hall, done in the classical-renaissance style, featuring pillars on the facade, and a huge dome over the center rotunda. Two two-story sections would connect the central feature with its sides, each section containing an art gallery and classical museum respectively. The wings of the building would be three stories each and be designed for classrooms. The projected cost was over $500,000, to which the 1909 state legislature gave $125,000 for the building’s east wing.	The $125,000 allotted for the structure’s east wing was too little for the ambitious plans, forcing McArdle and the University to scale back the project. The 1911 state legislature allotted $42,500 for the central section’s foundation, and work would be delayed by the outbreak of World War I. Work on the building wouldn’t resume for another six years, until the 1917 legislature funded the construction of the west wing, and the 1921 legislature gave $250,000 to complete the central portion and therefore the building. The final structure was devoid of the flair McArdle’s original plan contained. Strong Hall,<blockquote>…lacked everything that gave proportion and beauty to the original plan: the dome, the pillars, the impressive northern facade, the harmonious connecting sections between the main part and the wings; and while the original plan called for stone facing, the actual facing was an unappealing terra cotta.</blockquote>University administrators moved from Fraser Hall into Strong Hall during the Christmas break of 1923, construction on the building totally finished in January of 1924.	Strong Hall was thus completed, but it wouldn’t be known by that name for many years. Prior to its 1934 renaming for Chancellor Strong, the structure was known as the administrative building, or more commonly, the “ad” building. As Strong was being constructed in stages, each part took on its own title from the “west ad” to the “central ad.” In 1988 Strong Hall was added to the National Register for Historic Places.

Constructed in three phases over twelve years between 1911 and 1923, Strong Hall is a campus landmark and the main administration building at the University of Kansas. The building is named in honor of Frank Strong, who served as chancellor from 1902 to 1920. Strong was a proponent of the new building which would ease overcrowding at Fraser Hall, but the state legislature did not approve enough funding to complete Strong Hall in one phase. As a result, the east wing was completed in 1911, the west wing in 1918, and the center in 1923, three years after Strong's death. When the United States entered World War I, cadets trained at the construction site for the west wing, using the trenches created by construction crews to prepare for conditions they would face in Europe. Strong Hall has been on the National Register for Historic Places since 1988.

Strong Hall, University of Kansas

In 1966, faced with the familiar problem of fitting a growing student body into a limited amount of space, the University of Kansas procured $1.9 million in federal grant money and paired it with $3.9 million in state funding to construct a new building. KU hired Wichita firm Woodman and Van Doren to design a structure which would house the scattered humanities departments. Woodman and Van Doren proposed a grandiose vision for Wescoe hall.The Wichita firm’s plan was a towering complex 25-stories high with attached five-story wings, all accompanied with a parking garage to fit 150 cars (hence the popular legend that Wescoe is a refurbished parking garage). Woodman and Van Doren’s vision was grand, but the University couldn’t afford the cost. The firm’s design did not attract a bid lower than $7 million, substantially above the $5.8 million KU had allocated towards the project. Facing a looming expiration of federal funds, the University pivoted towards a shrunken down 15-story building.By December of 1968 KU had lost access to time sensitive federal funds, the only marker of progress being an excavated foundation which students would name “Wescoe Hole.” As the 1969 school year came around, it was clear that more space was necessary, and the University pursued a scaled down construction of Wescoe at all costs. Topeka Architecture firm Horst, Terrill, and Karst were hired and presented the Wescoe of today, a dramatically scaled down four story building which would cost $8 million, a million more than the highest bids for the original 25-story plan. Despite the disappointment and financial pain associated with the Topeka firm’s plan, the University desperately needed space and began construction.Facing a pressing need for additional funding, the University turned towards its students to help complete Wescoe Hall. On February 18, 1970 the Student Senate approved $7.50 in additional student fees for all those enrolled. Though unpopular by a near 2-1 count of the student body, the fees would raise $1.6 million for the construction of Wescoe Hall. Classes began in Wescoe in April of 1973, prior to its April 20, 1974 dedication, and prior even to the building's total completion.Perhaps the student body have never quite forgiven the raise in fees, but since its construction Wescoe Hall remains a favorite target of mockery. Despite the many insults hurled at its concrete walls, Wescoe is integral as the home for humanities, and as the advertising board for student life. Wescoe Beach, the ironically named concrete front yard of the hall, is constantly in use during the Fall and Spring semesters. The Beach is a popular spot for tabling, Greek life recruiting, and anyone else looking to accost innocent passerby. Though Wescoe is teased, those whose academic careers push them into its walls earn a deep love for the building, and recognize it as a linchpin for the University of Kansas.

Dedicated on April 20, 1974, and named in honor of Chancellor W. Clarke Wescoe, who led the University of Kansas from 1960 to 1969, Wescoe Hall is the central hub for the humanities on the KU campus. Originally planned to be a 25-story skyscraper, the modernist concrete structure has inspired many campus legends and remains a center of campus activity. The contrast between the ambitious original plans and the modest four-story building reminds many of the transition seen at many American universities from an education centered on the liberal arts to investment in other fields. The building's location and design have led many to believe it was intended to be a parking garage, while others assume its Cold War-era origins suggest it was intended to double as a bomb shelter. The building replaced the original Haworth Hall and Robinson Gymnasium, which were demolished in 1969.

Wescoe Hall, University of Kansas

The centrality of basketball to the University of Kansas community has deep roots. As the team grew in popularity during the 1920s, the Jayhawk fan base soon outgrew Robinson Gymnasium, where games had been held since 1907. The University spent around $350,000 on Hoch Auditorium, which was designed to serve as home court, event venue, and lecture hall. Hoch was completed in 1927 under the name University Auditorium, then two years later renamed Hoch Auditorium after former Kansas Governor and Board of Regents member Edward W. Hoch.Concerns about the flammability of Hoch Auditorium were present since its beginning. Prior to the building’s dedication, the state’s fire inspector quelled fears about a potential blaze by assuring that the Auditorium’s height would prevent total structural inflammation (this point was negated three years later with the addition of large wooden supports for the roof). Several other issues increased the risk of fire at Hoch, including the highly flammable curtains and the usage of Celotex to enhance acoustics. The federal government banned the usage of Celotex in construction in 1970 due to its high flammability. The University meant to address concerns about Hoch’s weakness to fire with the addition of lightning rods to the roof, but days before the scheduled improvements could begin, lightning struck and Hoch caught ablaze.Hoch’s history is not be limited to its destruction. For many years the building was a popular location for student life, as many activities were held at the Auditorium. From 1928-55 the KU basketball team played at Hoch, and for 40 years it hosted the Rock Chalk Revue. The Revue invited famous names in music, politics, and entertainment to delight Kansas crowds. The list of those who performed includes John F. Kennedy, Bob Marley, and Steve Martin. According to KU alumni, on the day of Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination Bill Cosby was performing at Hoch Auditoria and stopped his act early upon being informed of the tragedy.

Dedicated October 31, 1997, Budig Hall contains three large lecture halls, several classrooms, and a computer lab. Budig Hall is located on the former site of Hoch Auditorium which hosted large events and was home to the University of Kansas men’s basketball team from 1928-1955. On June 15, 1991 a lightning bolt struck Hoch’s roof and the building was set aflame. All that survived of Hoch Auditorium was its front facade, which was incorporated into Budig Hall when the building was reconstructed thanks in part to $18 million from the state legislature. The building's name honors Chancellor Gene Budig who was supported the building’s reconstruction. The building offers a fusion of old and new and is a tangible metaphor for the resilience of the University of Kansas following tragedy.

Budig Hall, University of Kansas

At the turn-of-the-century, the University of Kansas needed new facilities to meet the demand for classes and spaces to conduct research. Chancellor Frank Strong recognized the University's need for space and petitioned the state legislature for funding. The 1904 legislature refused funds for an engineering building, but relented two years later, providing nearly $400,000 for the construction of an engineering building, mineralogy building (old Haworth), and other campus projects like a new power plant.Construction on Marvin Hall began in fall 1907 and was completed in 1908, but the building went unused for a year as the power plant was not yet able to provide heat for the new building. Classes were held in Marvin in the fall of 1909 and the hall was dedicated the next year on February 25, 1910. The structure was named after Frank O. Marvin, the University’s first dean of Engineering and son of James Marvin, KU’s third chancellor.The department of architecture in the School of Engineering was created in 1913. Reflecting the growth of architecture programs, the school was renamed the School of Engineering &amp; Architecture in 1927. After the exodus of Engineering faculty to Learned Hall in 1963, Architecture faculty remained in Marvin and became the School of Architecture &amp; Urban Design in 1968. A $2.8 million dollar renovation of Marvin Hall was made during the mid-1970s to better suit the needs of the architecture program. The building was re-dedicated on April 17, 1982 and at that time renamed in honor of both Frank O. Marvin and James Marvin. The Summer of 2014 saw the completion of the Marvin Hall Forum. First conceived of in 2004 by John Gaunt, then dean of the School of Architecture and Design, the Forum is an addition to Marvin Hall that consists of a lecture hall, common room, and various private presentation spaces. The Forum was designed by Studio 804, KU’s student architecture group, and was funded by private entities. Studio 804 applied complex architectural design in their project, an example being the Forum’s passive energy saving. The walls are made of two separated glass sheets, and within the two walls are sensors which monitor outside heat and airflow. If the sensors determine it to be beneficial, fresh air replaces air conditioning within the building. The Marvin Hall Forum is a testament to the excellence and innovation within the students and faculty of KU’s School of Architecture and Design.

Dedicated February 25, 1910, Marvin Hall is home to the University of Kansas’s School of Architecture and Design. Marvin Hall housed KU’s School of Engineering until their move to Learned Hall in 1963. After the School of Engineering’s departure, a 1967 remodel outfitted Marvin Hall for the study of architecture. A 2014 renovation added the Marvin Hall Forum, an addition which blends the School of Architecture and Design’s innovation with the building’s Collegiate Gothic aesthetic.

Marvin Hall, University of Kansas

One of the first three faculty members at the University of Kansas, Francis Snow was a renowned scientist and field worker, and his efforts led to the acquisition of a vast collection of specimens known as the Snow Entomological Collection. The collection was first held in old Fraser Hall, but as it and the student body grew it became clear a new building had to be built. In 1885, Snow (who was now the Chancellor) obtained $50,000 from the state legislature for the construction of a new building that would hold classrooms as well as the collection. The building was completed in 1886 and named Snow Hall.A short thirty years after its construction, Old Snow Hall suffered from structural issues stemming from a loose foundation. In addition, the building was poorly insulated for both summer and winter, had a high risk of fire, and had regular issues with insects and rats. Deeming the building unsafe for further use, Chancellor Frank Strong discontinued the use of Old Snow Hall in 1916. Construction of New Snow Hall began in 1928 after the legislature appropriated nearly $300,000 to provide the building with state-of-the-art amenities. The building was formally dedicated on June 8, 1930, and old Snow was razed in 1934.Additions to the building were completed in 1950 and 1958, and a significant renovation took place between 1989 and 1990 that saw most of the 1958 addition converted to modern classrooms, offices, and more space for the Snow Entomological Collection. The collection has since moved to the Public Safety Building.

Dedicated June 8, 1930, Snow Hall is home to the departments of mathematics and economics. The building shares the name of previous Snow Hall, which stood on the northwest corner of Watson Library’s lawn from 1886 to 1934. The buildings are named after Francis Snow, former KU chancellor and one of the first three University faculty members.

Snow Hall, University of Kansas

Efforts to create this monument date back to the 1990s to commemorate the sacrifices of University of Kansas students. The monument was spurred by a large donation KU alumnus, Yong L. Kim Ross. Ross Fitch states in a 2004 article in the Daily Kansan that, “…the project got rolling when Yong L. Kim, Leawood resident, donated $30,000 in June 2003.”In the next two years, $120,000 was raised and construction on the monument began. KU faculty member Jon Havener secured aproval to commission a piece of art that would serve as a symbol of the Korean War. In an interview in the Lawrence Journal by Terry Rombeck, Havener discusses the challenges of making the sculpture “Havener came up with ‘Korean Cranes Rising,’ a piece depicting four intertwined cranes, symbolizing the four entities involved in the conflict — South Korea, North Korea, China and the United States.” Another interesting fact that was brought up when mentioning the design was that “Only five legs support the cranes. Havener said each of the entities lost a leg through battle, and the fifth leg there represents those at KU who lost their lives” As mentioned in an article in the Daily Kansan by writer Dani Litt while interviewing former KU student Jong Woo Han states, “It happily reminds me of an old Korean legend which views cranes as symbols of nobility, serenity and peace.”As the start of the Korean War was an outcome to the conclusion to WWII, as both Soviet and U.S. militaries occupied Korea after war dividing the country from North to South. Then the UN got involved and was lead by U.S. General Douglas MacArthur. General MacArthur's tactics were considered questionable, leading to protests at the monument to him in Inchon, Korea.This local monument was dedicated on April 16, 2005 with a ceremony led by the KU Chancellor who told the heroic story of Jack A. Davenport, a university student who saved the lives of his fellow Marines by using his body to protect them from a grenade that was thrown in the foxhole shared by his squad. Davenport was just one of the 64 local soldiers killed during the war, as all 64 names are on a plaque near the sculpture.

Dedicated in 2005, the memorial incorporates the names of sixty-four members of the University of Kansas community who lost their lives in the Korean War. The monument features four intertwined cranes, each symbolizing the entities that were involved in the conflict — South Korea, North Korea, China and the United States The centerpiece of the monument is a six foot brass Korean Crane sculpture entitled, "Korean Cranes Rising" by the arttist Jon Havener.

Korean War Memorial

The Chi Omega Fountain was dedicated on April 23, 1955, with 300 people in attendance. Speaking at the dedication ceremony Chancellor Franklin D. Murphy extolled the fountain’s virtues, “It represents another step in the beautification of the naturally beautiful K.U. campus. The fountain shows the University is interested not only in utilitarian things but in beauty as well.” The chance to design the fountain’s panels had been won in a contest by KU fine arts student James L. Bass.Bass won the right to design the eight relief plaques, and $100, with a Grecian design depicting the Eleusinian myth. The Eleusinian myth, or the story of Persephone and Hades, is depicted with four main panels and the same number alternating between them. The alternating panels respectively depict an owl, a pomegranate, a sheaf of wheat, and a cluster of carnations. The main panels depict Hades, Demeter, and Persephone adorned with a crown and flowers, and a contrasting Persephone as Queen of the Dead.The basin of the fountain was made with Indiana limestone, a structure inspired by a similar fountain from Northumberland, England because it “ harmonized with the Chi Omega house which is of English design.” The fountain was fabricated by Erkin Studios in New York. Out of the fountain’s $11,800 cost, about $5,000 was sourced from students, alumni, and friends of Chi Omega. The rest of the cost was paid by the Elizabeth M. Watkin’s fund through the KU Endowment.In the decades that followed its dedication, the Chi Omega Fountain has become a common reference point for students and alumni given its location at the western entrance to Jayhawk Boulevard. The fountain usually offers a place of peaceful reflection and relaxation, but it has also been the center of numerous campus pranks. The waters of the fountain have met dye, soap, even a catfish. However one decides to use the fountain, it remains a symbol of KU’s active student life, both as a work of architecture and point of student tradition.

Dedicated on April 23, 1955, the Chi Omega Fountain stands at the western edge of Jayhawk Boulevard as a memorial to alumni of KU's Lambda Chapter. The fountain project began in October of 1952 as part of the sorority chapter’s 50th anniversary. About half of the cost of the fountain came from students and alumni. The limestone fountain has become a prominent campus landmark, given its location at the junction of Naismith Drive and Jayhawk Boulevard. The panels of the fountain were crafted by KU student James L. Bass and feature characters from Greek mythology.

University of Kansas Walking Tour- Jayhawk Boulevard and Memorial Drive

California and Oregon Trails Memorial

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