Library Exhibit Explores History of USU’s Changing Campus

LOGAN - In commemoration of the Year of the Arts, the Merrill-Cazier Library presents an exhibit celebrating USU’s Built Environment. The exhibit chronicles nearly 130 years of campus development, including the Chase Fine Arts Center. Drawing on documents in the library’s Special Collections and Archives, Cody Patton conducted research for the exhibit, under the direction of University Archivist, Robert Parson. Patton, a senior majoring in history, is the first recipient of the Elsner Curatorial Internship, named for the late Larry and Yoko Elsner, and funded through the generosity of the Larry Elsner Art Foundation.

Beginning as the Agricultural College of Utah, USU opened in September 1890. The south wing of Old Main served the needs of 139 students and nine faculty. Completed in 1902, Old Main endures as the university’s flagship building, anchoring it on the hill and framing its historic central Quad. This exhibit recounts the development of USU’s central campus, from the first master plan in 1912, through two world wars and the Great Depression.

Then and now, students remain USU’s most important asset. This exhibit discusses student efforts to shape the campus, such as the annual A-Day festivities, and examine the history of student-centered facilities from the temporary union building, or TUB, during the post WWII period, through the 1950s Union Building and the present Taggart Student Center. 

Important for students and the community alike, this exhibit also explores the evolution of athletic and recreational venues. The Aggies won their first intercollegiate football game on Thanksgiving Day 1894 when they defeated the University of Utah on a makeshift field east of Old Main. This exhibit will present the history of football and basketball facilities, including Romney Stadium, Smart Gymnasium, Nelson Fieldhouse and the Spectrum, as well as facilities used for student recreation.

Contact: Robert Parson, (435) 797-0894, robert.parson@usu.edu

In commemoration of Utah State University’s 130-year anniversary and the Year of the Arts, the Merrill-Cazier Library presents an exhibit celebrating USU’s Built Environment. The exhibition tells the story of USU’s development—from the first master plan in 1912 through both world wars, the Great Depression, and beyond. Additionally, Built Environment highlights student and community efforts to shape the campus. 

Drawing on documents in the library’s Special Collections & Archives, student intern Cody Patton prepared the narrative for the exhibit under the direction of University Archivist, Robert Parson. Patton is the first recipient of the Elsner Curatorial Internship, named for the late Larry and Yoko Elsner and funded through the generosity of the Larry Elsner Art Foundation.

Guest speaker Martha Bradley Evans is a professor in the College of Architecture and Planning at the University of Utah. She serves as the vice-chair of the Utah State Board of History and chair of the Utah Heritage Foundation. Her most recent work on spatial religious communities maps the distinctive patterns, meanings, and practices of communal religious groups such as the Branch Davidians, the FLDS, and Adidam as they imagine and construct spatial worlds. Her past scholarship includes three main areas: public history, gender and community, and religious community.