Things of the past ... Mesa Verde to Fort Morgan

 Thing of the past ...

"Dismantled towers, and turrets broken," Cliff Palace in the Mesa Verde, Colo., U.S.A., on line R.G. & S.R.R.

Created / Published:c1898.

Notes:

- Copyright by 1898, by B.L. Singley; Keystone View Co. (no. 8014).

- This record contains unverified, old data from caption card.

- Caption card tracings: Photog. I.; Indians Camps...; Colo. Mesa Verde; Shelf.

Medium: 1 photographic print on stereo card : stereograph.

Call Number/Physical Location:

STEREO U.S. GEOG FILE - Colorado--Parks--Mesa Verde [item] [P&P]

Repository: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

Digital Id: stereo 1s11350 //hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/stereo.1s11350

cph 3b07544 //hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/cph.3b07544

Library of Congress Control Number:2004679783

Thing of the past ...
Tourists looking for Indian hieroglyphic pointed out by ranger, Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado
Lee, Russell, 1903-1986, photographer
Created / Published:1939 Aug.
Headings
- United States--Colorado--Mesa Verde National Park
- Mountains, tourists--Colorado
Genre:Nitrate negatives
Notes:
- Title and other information from caption card.
- Transfer; United States. Office of War Information. Overseas Picture Division. Washington Division; 1944.
- More information about the FSA/OWI Collection is available at http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.fsaowi
Medium: 1 negative : nitrate ; 35 mm.
Call Number/Physical Location: LC-USF33- 012347-M4 [P&P] LOT 615 (Possible associated group of images)
Source Collection: Farm Security Administration - Office of War Information Photograph Collection (Library of Congress)
Repository: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, DC 20540 USA http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print
Digital Id: fsa 8a26855 //hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/fsa.8a26855
Library of Congress Control Number: 2017740645

Thing of the past ...
Arch at Denver, Colo.
Bain News Service, publisher
Created / Published: [no date recorded on caption card]
Headings: - Denver,Colo
Genre:Glass negatives
Notes:
- Forms part of: George Grantham Bain Collection (Library of Congress).
- Title from data provided by the Bain News Service on the negative.
- General information about the George Grantham Bain Collection is available at http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.ggbain
Medium: 1 negative : glass ; 5 x 7 in. or smaller.
Call Number/Physical Location:LC-B2- 39-15 [P&P]
Source Collection: Bain News Service photograph collection
Repository: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print
Digital Id: ggbain 00212 https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/ggbain.00212
Library of Congress Control Number: 2014680210

 

Thing of the past ...
Mrs. Helen L. Grenfell
Photograph shows Helen Loring Grenfell, a Colorado school superintendent. In 1920 she was a candidate for delegate at large to the Democratic National Convention. (Source: Flickr Commons project, 2017)
Bain News Service, publisher
Created / Published: [between ca. 1915 and ca. 1920]
Genre: Glass negatives
Notes:
Title from data provided by the Bain News Service on the negative.
- Forms part of: George Grantham Bain Collection (Library of Congress).
- General information about the George Grantham Bain Collection is available at http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.ggbain
Medium: 1 negative : glass ; 5 x 7 in. or smaller.
Call Number/Physical Location: LC-B2- 5203-5 [P&P]
Source Collection: Bain News Service photograph collection
Repository: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print
Digital Id: ggbain 30555 //hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/ggbain.30555
Library of Congress Control Number:2014710712

 

Thing of the past ...
County road, Ft. Morgan, Colo.
Photograph shows groups of men in three automobiles crossing a dirt road.
Created / Published: [between ca. 1900 and ca. 1920]
Headings:
- Dirt roads--Colorado--Fort Morgan--1900-1920
- Automobiles--Colorado--Fort Morgan--1900-1920
Genre:
Photographic prints--1900-1920
Notes:
- Fort Morgan Drug Co., Fort Morgan, Colo.
- Title from item.
Medium: 1 photographic print.
Call Number/Physical Location: SSF - Roads -- Colorado [item] [P&P]
Repository: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print
Digital Id: cph 3a19689 //hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/cph.3a19689
Library of Congress Control Number: 2012649625        

 

Thing of the past ...
Threshing grain, San Luis Valley Farms, Alamosa, Colorado
Rothstein, Arthur, 1915-1985, photographer
Created / Published: 1939 Oct.
Headings:
- United States--Colorado--Alamosa
Genre: Nitrate negatives
Notes:
- Title and other information from caption card.
- Transfer; United States. Office of War Information. Overseas Picture Division. Washington Division; 1944.
- More information about the FSA/OWI Collection is available at

 

Thing of the past ...
Fog adds to the winter chill above and surrounding Steamboat Springs, Colorado
Highsmith, Carol M., 1946-, photographer
Created / Published: 2016-02-05.
Headings:
- United States--Colorado--Routt County--Steamboat Springs
- America
- Fog
Genre: Digital photographs--Color--2010-2020
Notes:
- Title, date and keywords based on information provided by the photographer.
- Credit line: Gates Frontiers Fund Colorado Collection within the Carol M. Highsmith Archive, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division.
- Gift; Gates Frontiers Fund; 2015; (DLC/PP-2015:068).
- Forms part of: Gates Frontiers Fund Colorado Collection within the Carol M. Highsmith Archive.
Medium: 1 photograph : digital, tiff file, color.
Call Number/Physical Location: LC-DIG-highsm- 36902 (ONLINE) [P&P]
Source Collection: Highsmith, Carol M., 1946- Carol M. Highsmith Archive.
Repository: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print
Digital Id: highsm 36902 //hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/highsm.36902
Library of Congress Control Number: 2017687061 

Thing of the past ...
Residential district of Durango, Colorado. Durango is trading, shipping and distribution center of southwestern Colorado
Lee, Russell, 1903-1986, photographer
Created / Published: 1940 Sept.
Headings:
: - United States--Colorado--La Plata County--Durango
Genre: Safety film negatives
Notes:
- Title and other information from caption card.
- Transfer; United States. Office of War Information. Overseas Picture Division. Washington Division; 1944.
- More information about the FSA/OWI Collection is available at http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.fsaowi
- Temp. note: usf34batch4
- Film copy on SIS roll 24, frame 2603.
Medium: 1 negative : safety ; 3 1/4 x 4 1/4 inches or smaller.
Call Number/Physical Location:LC-USF34- 037748-D [P&P] LOT 464 (corresponding photographic print)
Source Collection: Farm Security Administration - Office of War Information Photograph Collection (Library of Congress)
Repository: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print
Digital Id: fsa 8b26332 //hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/fsa.8b26332
Library of Congress Control Number:2017787929  

Thing of the past ...

A portion of what some call "the oldest building in the world" in Lamar, the county seat of Prowers County, Colorado
Highsmith, Carol M., 1946-, photographer
Created / Published:2015-05-20.
Headings:
- United States--Colorado--Prowers County--Lamar
- America
- Petrified wood station
- W.G. Brown
- Roadside attractions
Genre:Digital photographs--Color--2010-2020
Notes:
- Title, date and keywords based on information provided by the photographer.
- What's left of the old gas station gets its name because it is made of petrified wood, in effect, wood turned to stone, dating back 175 million years or so. Hoping to sidetrack tourists traveling along US 287 on their way through Lamar, Colorado to the Rocky Mountains, lumber dealer W. G. Brown built the one-of-a-kind structure in 1932. The station became a tire store in 1962 and as of this image (in 2015) was part of a used-car lot.
- Credit line: Gates Frontiers Fund Colorado Collection within the Carol M. Highsmith Archive, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division.
- Gift; Gates Frontiers Fund; 2015; (DLC/PP-2015:068).
- Forms part of: Gates Frontiers Fund Colorado Collection within the Carol M. Highsmith Archive.
Medium:1 photograph : digital, tiff file, color.
Call Number/Physical Location: LC-DIG-highsm- 32199 (ONLINE) [P&P]
Source Collection: Highsmith, Carol M., 1946- Carol M. Highsmith Archive.
Repository: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print
Digital Id: highsm 32199 //hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/highsm.32199
Library of Congress Control Number: 2015632214

Thing of the past ...
Ennis House, North side, Gunnison Avenue, Saint Elmo (historical), Chaffee County, CO
Other Title: Saint Elmo Historic District
Historic American Buildings Survey, creator
Ennis, James
Stark, Roy A
Ennis, Elizabeth M
Stark, Anthony J
Wegman-French, Lysa, transmitter
Thallheimer, Arnold, photographer
Glass, James A, historian
Created / Published: Documentation compiled after 1933
Headings:
- log cabins
- houses
- domestic life
- mining
- Colorado -- Chaffee County -- Saint Elmo (Historical)
Notes:
- Significance: A rarity among surviving log cabins at St. Elmo, this cabin illustrates the "Anglo-Western" type first used in the Plains Settlement and later brought to Rocky Mountain mining camps. Unlike other St. Elmo log cabins of the 1880's with high-pitched gable roofs and plank gables, the Ennis Cabin is totally constructed of logs below the eaves and has a low-pitch roof. Its construction suggests the absence of a saw mill, but mills appeared in 1880, and tax assessment records show no improvements on the site before 1885.
- Survey number: HABS CO-163
- Building/structure dates: ca. 1885- ca. 1890 Initial Construction
Medium:Photo(s): 1
Data Page(s): 3
Photo Caption Page(s): 1
Call Number/Physical Location: HABS COLO,8-STEL,32-
Source Collection: Historic American Buildings Survey (Library of Congress)
Repository: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print
Control Number: co0337 

 

Thing of the past ...
Nikola Tesla and George Westinghouse were contracted to construct the world's first commercial transmissions of high-pressure electricity. The hydroelectric plant produced alternating current (AC) instead of direct current (DC).
L.L. Nunn power station, Ames, San Miguel County, Colorado, shows a side gable structure with lean-to additions, board and batten construction and uneven board roofline. A large stack of lumber is piled in front of the power station below the Gold King mine. Nunn, a lawyer, was hired to represent the financially troubled mine that could not turn a profit due to high cost of fuel and 12,000 foot altitude. He came up with the idea to use the San Miguel River to power an electrical power plant.
Source L.L. Nunn : a memoir / Stephen Bailey. Ithaca, NY, 1933.

Thing of the past ...
[Main Street, Creede, Colorado]
Photo shows the main street at the mouth of Willow Creek Canyon. (Source: Flickr Commons project, 2008)
Feininger, Andreas, 1906-1999, photographer
Created / Published: 1942 Dec.
Headings:
- World War, 1939-1945
- Mountains
- Streets
- United States--Colorado--Creede
Genre:Transparencies--Color
Notes:
- 12002-62.
- Transfer from U.S. Office of War Information, 1944.
- General information about the FSA/OWI Color Photographs is available at http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.fsac
- Title devised by Library staff. Title from FSA or OWI agency caption misidentifed the view as "Lead mine, Creede, Colo."
- Additional information about this photograph might be available through the Flickr Commons project at http://www.flickr.com/photos/library_of_congress/2179914856 External
Medium: 1 transparency : color.
Call Number/Physical Location:LC-USW36-456 [P&P]
Source Collection: Farm Security Administration - Office of War Information color slides and transparencies collection (Library of Congress)
Repository: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print
Digital Id: fsac 1a34857 https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/fsac.1a34857
Library of Congress Control Number: 2017878855 

Some favorite photos

Thing of the past ...
Upsilon Peak, Estes' Park, Colorado
Detroit Photographic Co.
Created / Published: [between 1898 and 1905]
Headings:
- Mountains
- Lakes & ponds
- United States--Colorado--Estes Park
Genre:Photochrom prints--Color
Notes:
- Title from item.
- Detroit Publishing Co. no. "51012".
- Forms part of: Photochrom Print Collection.
- More information about the Photochrom Print Collection is available at http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.pgz
Medium: 1 photomechanical print : photochrom, color.
Call Number/Physical Location: LOT 13923, no. 35 [item] [P&P]
Repository: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print
Digital Id: ppmsca 17843 //hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/ppmsca.17843
Library of Congress Control Number:2008676343     

Thing of the past ...
Town of Eureka in 1920s, from David Morris collection. Today, the original townsite gravel roads remain, and debris litters the area. The only remaining structure is the Eureka jail, which has been restored. Foundations remain of the Sunnyside Mill. Center of Southwest Studies, Fort Lewis College.

  

Thing of the past ...
Delapidated buildings at Telluride, Colorado
Lee, Russell, 1903-1986, photographer
Created / Published
1940 Sept.
Headings
- United States--Colorado--San Miguel County--Telluride
Genre: Safety film negatives
Notes:
- Title and other information from caption card.
- Transfer; United States. Office of War Information. Overseas Picture Division. Washington Division; 1944.
- More information about the FSA/OWI Collection is available at http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.fsaowi
- Temp. note: usf34batch4
- Film copy on SIS roll 24, frame 2378.
Medium: 1 negative : safety ; 3 1/4 x 4 1/4 inches or smaller.
Call Number/Physical Location: LC-USF34- 037519-D [P&P] LOT 465 (corresponding photographic print)
Source Collection: Farm Security Administration - Office of War Information Photograph Collection (Library of Congress)
Repository: Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print
Digital Id: fsa 8b26105 //hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/fsa.8b26105
Library of Congress Control Number:2017787688

Thing of the past ...
Estes Park, Colo.
Created / Published:1907.
Headings:
- United States--Colorado--Estes Park
Genre:
Postcards--1900-1910
Cityscape photographs--1900-1910
Notes:
- Title from item.
- Copyright by F.P. Clatworthy.
- Copyright no.: H 98468.
- Transfer; Copyright Office.
Medium:
1 photograph : gelatin silver print ; sheet 9 x 14 cm (postcard format)
Call Number/Physical Location: PCRD 4 - Colorado - Estes Park, no. 1 [P&P]
Source Collection: Postcard filing series (Library of Congress)
Repository:Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print
Digital Id: pcrd 1d00634 https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pcrd.1d00634
pcrd 2d00634 https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pcrd.2d00634
Library of Congress Control Number:2024686929 

Thing of the past ...
The Antlers, Colorado Springs
Jackson, William Henry, 1843-1942, photographer
Detroit Publishing Co., copyright claimant
Detroit Publishing Co., publisher
Created / Published: c1901.
Headings:
- Hotels
- United States--Colorado--Colorado Springs
Genre:Dry plate negatives
Notes:
- Attribution based on negative D4-13797.
- Corresponding glass transparencies (D4-13796 A and D4-13796 B) available on videodisc frames 1A-29650 and 1A-29678 respectively. "13796" and "015138" on
- Detroit Publishing Co. nos. 015138 and 013796.
- Gift; State Historical Society of Colorado; 1949.
Medium: 1 negative : glass ; 8 x 10 in.
Call Number/Physical Location: LC-D4-13796 [P&P]
Source Collection: Detroit Publishing Company photograph collection (Library of Congress)
Repository: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print
Digital Id: det 4a09166 //hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/det.4a09166
Library of Congress Control Number:2016799131 

Thing of the past ...
Policemen in parade on 16th Street, May 17, 1921
Denver police officers march in the Denver Police and Firemen's Parade near the corner of Sixteenth (16th) Street and Champa Street in Denver, Colorado. Officers marching at the head of the formation include: Chief of Police, Herbert R. Williams; Captain Robert Carter; Captain George Dyon; Captain Frank Lee; and Captain George Merritt. A policeman on the edge of the formation holds a sign reading: "Traffic Officers." Spectators line the street. Shows the May Company Building, America Building, and the Daniels and Fisher Tower. Signs on commercial buildings read: "The May Co., " "Your Dollar Will Go Farther at Joslin's, " "America Theatre, See America First, " and "[?] Burnett."
Source: City Hall.
Western History/Genealogy Dept., Denver Public Library.

 Thing of the past ...
United Rico Cornet Band
Credit: Denver Public Library Special Collections
Date : [1900-1920]
Men from the United Rico Cornet Band pose with their instruments near commercial buildings and an aerial mine tramway in Rico, Dolores County, Colorado. The cable ore car has number "18" on it. The men hold cornets, trombones, drums, tubas (or euphoniums), clarinets and French horns. They wear suits, ties, hats; some wear knickers and caps. Women and men stand in the background. Signs read: "Laundry" and "Restaurant." Shows a brick building with a tower and dormers, houses and utility poles.

Thing of the past ...
Engine Co. 2
Credit: Denver Public Library Special Collections
Date :1899
Firemen pose with equipment by the firehouse in Rico, Dolores County, Colorado. They are identified as: (l to r) "Schoot, Troy, Siebert, Chief Dulmager ?, Scherer, Goodman; (standing) - Ford, Robert Dulmager?, Pemberton, and Reyman. 

Thing of the past ...
Rio Grande Southern Railroad track washout repair near Stoner (Colo.)
Date/circa: 1910/1949
Photographer:
Notes:Mile Post 087.40. Robert Herrone states, "Could be same time frame as P026129. They would NOT be repairing the track in 1952 just to scrap it. Then again they did have problems in 1948 about the same time they lost the mail contract and this could be those repairs being completed. Looking at the clothing it seems a little more modern than the 1920s." [Source: email 3/27/07.] Center of Southwest Studies,Fort Lewis College.

 

Thing of the past ...
A Pike's Peak prospector
Jackson, William Henry, 1843-1942, photographer
Detroit Publishing Co., publisher
Created / Published:[ca. 1900]
Headings:
- Prospecting
- Log cabins
- United States--Colorado
Genre: Dry plate negatives
Notes:
- Title in Detroit, Catalogue J Supplement (1901-1906): St. Peter's guide at home, St. Peter's, Colorado.
- Date based on Detroit, Catalogue J Supplement (1901-1906).
- "WHJ 400" on negative.
- Negative cracked and taped right margin.
- Detroit Publishing Co. no. 013794.
- Gift; State Historical Society of Colorado; 1949.
Medium:1 negative : glass ; 8 x 10 in.
Call Number/Physical Location:LC-D4-13794 [P&P]
Source Collection:Detroit Publishing Company photograph collection (Library of Congress)
Repository: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print
Digital Id: det 4a09164 //hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/det.4a09164
Library of Congress Control Number:2016808845

Thing of the past ...
Louis & Lola ?-- TITANIC survivors
Photo taken before the 'orphans' of the Titanic were fully identified. The boys are French brothers Michel (age 4) and Edmond Navratil (age 2). To board the ship, their father assumed the name Louis Hoffman and used their nicknames, Lolo and Mamon. Their father died in the disaster of the RMS TITANIC, which struck an iceberg in April 1912 and sank, killing more than 1,500 people. (Source: Flickr Commons project, 2008)
Bain News Service, publisher
Created / Published: [1912 April]
Genre: Glass negatives
Notes:
- Title from negative.
- Forms part of: George Grantham Bain Collection (Library of Congress).
- General information about the George Grantham Bain Collection is available at http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.ggbain
- Additional information about this photograph might be available through the Flickr Commons project at http://www.flickr.com/photos/library_of_congress/2535973345 External
Medium: 1 negative : glass ; 5 x 7 in. or smaller.
Call Number/Physical Location: LC-B2- 2486-15 [P&P]
Source Collection: Bain News Service photograph collection
Repository: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print
Digital Id: ggbain 11222 //hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/ggbain.11222
Library of Congress Control Number: 2014691309        

  

 

 

 

 

   

 

Missing Old Main, long after it was gone

Old Main at what became Colorado State University in 1880s.

Fire remains one of the campus’s greatest tragedies, mysteries

 By Rob Carrigan, robcarrigan1@gmail.com

I miss Old Main, a building at Colorado State University (CSU) that was gone more than a decade before I was even on campus in the 1980s. My Dad remembered it as an Aggie when he slept in the Field House near South College Gym, shortly after WWII. To my older sister, it already had become campus lore when she attended in the 1970s. My younger brother probably missed it too, when he arrived at school and cruised into 1990s. Maybe my daughter thought about it — while she was there in 2020s?

"When CSU lost its first academic building to fire on May 8, 1970, it had been a tumultuous week, to say the least," writes Jeff Dodge, of Colorado State University Source.

 

"Former U.S. President Richard Nixon had just announced the U.S. invasion of Cambodia, sparking protests at college campuses around the country. One of those was Kent State University, where four students were killed and nine others wounded by National Guard soldiers on May 4."

Old Main is a term often applied to the original building present on college or university campuses in the United States. The building sometimes serves today as home to administrative offices, such as the president or provost, but in its early inception may have served multiple functions, including classrooms and residences. Although many university campuses have outgrown the initial capacity of "old mains" and their geography has made them less central to university life than they once were, the building is commonly depicted in university or college marketing material to promote the longevity and tradition of the institution. 

Today, at the University of Colorado in Boulder, built in 1876, Old Main is CU's first campus building, and is home to the arts and sciences offices as well as the CU Heritage Center on the third floor.

The University of Wyoming's oldest structure, known today as Old Main, occupied a prominent block in the center of Laramie, when it was built in 1886.

"In the days following Kent State, many CSU students went on strike, skipping class on Thursday, May 7, and Friday, May 8. According to news reports at the time, about 2,000 students attended a concert/debate at the South College Gym that Friday night and voted to continue the strike the coming Monday. As the event was winding down, just before 11 p.m., Donald Banks of the CSU Police Department reported smoke coming from Old Main, the University’s first significant building (a “claim shanty” had been built several years before Old Main opened in 1879), " says Jeff Dodge, of Colorado State University Source.

 

"But by the time firefighters arrived, the blaze was out of control, and there was neither enough water nor water pressure to douse it because it was near the end of a main water line. By morning, the stately building where CSU’s roots were initially laid more than 90 years before was a complete loss."

Dodge says his writing was part of a series of monthly stories about some of the things uncovered by film producer Frank Boring, who is poring over CSU’s film archives as he works on a documentary about the University’s history in honor of its 150th anniversary. For more stories, an interactive photo slider and a quiz on CSU lore, visit csu150.colostate.edu. 

 

Old Main and its additions as they appeared in 1891. University Archives and Special Collections

 

From CSU's Sense of Place:  A Campus History of Colorado's Land-Grant University, by James E. Hansen, Gordon A. Hazard, and Linda M. Meyer.  Fort Collins, CO:  Colorado State University, 2018.

 

Architects - George E. King of Boulder, Professor James W. Lawrence, Montezuma W. Fuller, Willis Adams Marean of Denver

Builders - W. G. Bentley of Greeley, Henry C. Baker of Boulder, Adams and Ellis of Pueblo

Built on the site of a large prairie dog village, the Administration or Main Building (Old Main) was ready for the start of school the fall of 1879. In 1889 the first addition to the “College Hall” was opened and a second addition was opened in 1903.

At the January 1878 State Board of Agriculture meeting, Board President William Frisbee Watrous and Board Secretary Harris Stratton were elected as a committee of two members to carry out the planning and arrangements for the construction of the new “College Building”. In March 1878, building designs were considered along with input requested from the President of Kansas State Agricultural College, Dr. John H. Anderson. The plans that were accepted for the 40’ x 60’building came from George E. King of Boulder. On June 20, 1878 ground was broken without any ceremony. Work began to build the “College Hall” by low bidder W. G. Bentley of Greeley.

The cornerstone for “Old Main” was set on July 27, 1878. It was a rainy day in Fort Collins. Despite the gloomy weather, a large crowd journeyed south of town to the building site to hear the speeches and witness the Masons as they set the cornerstone on the northeast corner. The cornerstone was anointed with wheat (emblem of plenty), wine (emblem of joy and gladness), and oil (emblem of peace). Mr. J. C. Shattuck, State Superintendent of Public Instruction said in his address, “Gentlemen of the Board, I charge you, fling away ambition—if you have any—to erect here grand buildings; but let your ambition rather be to create here an educational influence that shall be felt on every farm; in every kitchen; in every workshop; in every cattle camp in the state of Colorado. Let us remember that no words or ceremonies of ours today can consecrate this soil; but, if in the years to come, our sons and daughters are here trained to greater skill in their various callings; if, above all, the influence of this spot shall make them better and nobler men and women, then, indeed this shall be hallowed ground.” It should be noted that no tablet to mark the cornerstone was installed that day. This would not be done until the autumn of 1927 when the stone tablet with the inscription: “Laid by the Grand Lodge A. T. F. & A. M. of Colorado, July 27, A. D. 1878-A. L. 5878” was placed on the building. Recovered and stored after the May 8, 1970 fire, the tablet was brought out and incorporated into the design of the northeast corner of the Morgan Library with its mid-1990s renovation and addition.

It was soon evident that W. G. Bentley was failing to perform the construction as required by the building contract. The State Board of Agriculture fired him and turned to builder Henry C. Baker from Boulder who was given the contract to finish the $7000 building. Work was finished by the December 1878 deadline. By early spring of 1879, wall cracks were discovered along with an improperly connected lightning rod. The roof gutters dropped water too close to the foundation which threatened to ruin the new building. On May 29, 1879, the State Board of Agriculture voted to finish the two unfinished rooms in the basement of the College Building, erect the necessary sanitary outbuildings, and furnish the windows for the College Building with shutters to protect the glass from hail damage. The outhouse was constructed with brick. The repairs and upgrades took time and money, but made the structure ready for the September 1, 1879 opening of the State Agricultural College of Colorado and its first students.

The original building was described in an essay by James R. Miller as being located on a beautiful elevated site west of College Avenue, less than three-fourths of a mile southwest of the business part of Fort Collins. It offered a magnificent view from every point of the compass. The basement was 62’ x 43 ½’ with a 9’ ceiling. The foundation was 5’ below the surface. The walls were built of the best mountain stone, dressed to a uniform thickness, and finished with raised points, presenting a piece of workmanship unequalled in the state; impressing everyone with its beauty, strength and solidity. The basement had four rooms that were well lighted, and could, in the future, if occasion requires, be used for students. There were three entrances, which were reached by flights of stone steps. The superstructure was constructed of brick, the front being laid in selected brick of uniform color, and was pronounced as fine work as could be found in the state. The first story was 15’ high in the clear, and contained four rooms beside the main hall and cloak-rooms. There were two entrances, the front having two heavy doors, reached by a flight of steps and platform. The rear door was single, and was reached in the same manner as the front door. The second story was 13’ in height, and was reached by a substantial winding stairway. This story had two rooms, 14’ x 14’ with a hall and recitation room, connected by sliding doors, so that both rooms could be thrown into one, making a magnificent hall the entire length of the building. Every room in the building was thoroughly lighted and ventilated, and from the elevated site of the building, each room had a fine view of the surrounding scenery. The College Building was so arranged that it could be heated either by furnace or stove; was 40’ high and was surmounted by a tower 21’ high, making the extreme height from the ground 65’. The inside finish was perfect in the minutest particular, while the whole building, from the foundation to the top of the tower, was constructed in a substantial and workmanlike manner, reflecting great credit on H. C. Baker, the contractor, and was an enduring monument to the educational interests of the State.

Shortly after opening, President Edwards moved his family into rooms on the second floor of the Main College Building. They lived there from the fall of 1881 until April 1882 when they moved next door to the new College Dormitory so Mrs. Edwards could serve as Dormitory Matron. Old Main, in essence, was the second official residence of the College President. The basement served as a residence for Professors Ainsworth E. Blount and Charles F. Davis for a while. George Glover lived in the Old Main basement for a while when he arrived as a student in 1879

The new building contained the very first College Library which first opened its doors in 1880 as a small reading room on the south side of the first floor. Over the years, more space was allotted as the collection of books and periodicals increased. The Main College Building was the College Library until January 1905 when the books were moved to the upper floor of the building now called Laurel Hall.

In the summer of 1880, rain gutters were installed on the building. In June 1880, discussions began about building an addition to the College Building. It would take a decade for this to actually happen. On April 4, 1889, plans for an addition drawn by Mechanical Engineering Professor James W. Lawrence were accepted by the State Board of Agriculture in a special meeting. However, outside bids for architectural plans were requested. On June 7, 1889, Mr. Otto Bulow of Pueblo appeared before the State Board of Agriculture to discuss his architectural plans for the addition to the College Building. His plans were rejected due to excessive cost.

In the end, Professor Lawrence’s plans were used by the builders Adams and Ellis. The first addition increased the original facilities as well as providing an auditorium/chapel and an armory. Costing $18,000, it was built in late 1889 and ready for use by May 1890. Its design was very similar to that used with the nearby Botanical and Horticultural Laboratory built in 1890.

The auditorium/chapel in the new addition was said to have the most beautiful ceiling in Colorado. It was decided that electric lights would be installed in this new room and in the adjoining hallways. The work was intended to be done before the upcoming June 1890 commencement exercises, but did not happen. Electric lighting and steam heating were installed in the fall of 1890.

In the summer of 1891, massive stone steps designed by local architect Montezuma W. Fuller were installed on the building. By the summer of 1893 it was evident that structural problems existed in the addition. Mr. Willis Adams Marean, a certified architect from Denver, was hired to determine what needed to be done to fix the problems. In 1894, work was done to stabilize the building and make the walls and roof safe for occupancy.

The second addition was finished in late 1903. Standing only 54 feet from the railroad right of way, this plain looking building addition gave the sprawling building a new upstairs auditorium and provided the first gymnasium for the campus in its basement. The Main Building was now enlarged into a maze of rooms and corridors that seemed to have no organized pattern. This addition did allow the declining Commercial Department some new space and thus cleared the way for the College Library to move from the Main Building into the former Commercial Building beginning in January 1905.

In the fall of 1909, a small room in the basement was remodeled into a lavatory for the girls. Besides toilets, it contained wash basins and a shower. The first indoor flush toilets or water closets had been retrofitted into the Main Building’s basement during the late 1890s as well as a few of the older classroom buildings. After the construction of the Lavatory building west of the Main Building in 1902, new buildings had restrooms built into their design.

In the summer of 1915, a spectator’s balcony was built in the basement gymnasium to increase the amount of available floor space for playing basketball games. Poor ventilation in the room was still a problem. It was this summer that photographer Grant Eddy moved the College Photograph Shop into the basement of Old Main.

Besides theatrical performances, assemblies and speakers, movies were very popular with members of the campus community. In the summer of 1933, the State Board of Agriculture authorized the construction of a moving picture projection booth in the auditorium. The new projector and its sound system were for the use of the Lyceum Committee of the Associated Students and used under conditions set down by President Lory.

In March of 1940, the old house lights in the Old Main Theatre were rewired by student Ralph Giddings so they could be dimmed rather than simply being switched on and off. This made a nicer overall production for theatrical performances. Passing trains still interrupted the events as they had since the day ground was broken for the building. “Waiting for the train to go by” was likely the oldest tradition on the campus.

In 1951, after seeing Old Main burn in a vivid nightmare, President William Morgan convinced the State Board of Agriculture to have steel fire escape stairs installed on the 73 year-old building. It was still recognized that the old building had open interior stairways made of wood and was considered a high risk for a devastating fire. The new fire escapes did give some added protection for the building users.

For many years the departments of English and Mathematics occupied this building. Photographic Services occupied the basement for five decades before moving into the newly constructed A-wing of the Social Sciences Building in 1968. During the 1960s, the aging building was used by the Department of Visual Arts and the Department of Consumer Science. It was during this same time that the old building was on a list to be demolished due to its age and condition.

The planned demolition did not happen, and by January 1970, a new master plan had been approved and published to raze the two additions and to renovate the original portion of the building and use it as a visitor center and museum. In February 1970, efforts to get Old Main designated as a historic building by the Fort Collins Landmarks Preservation Commission had been started. This process was progressing well until the tumultuous events of the Vietnam War era intervened. 

Sadly, Old Main was destroyed by a massive fire late in the evening of Friday, May 8, 1970. Non-student, antiwar activists were said to have been on the CSU campus during the week organizing student demonstrations. A free concert supporting the antiwar moratorium was being held that evening in the South College Gym. The moratorium and demonstrations were in response to the Nixon Administration’s approval on April 30, 1970 of the United States Armed Forces being allowed to expand anti-Viet Cong combat operations across the border into Cambodia.

While on his evening patrol of the campus, Sergeant Donald Banks of the University Police Department discovered a fire burning in Old Main at 10:58 P.M. and immediately turned in the alarm. The fire, believed to have started in the north part of the basement, was raging out of control by the time the first Fort Collins Fire Department firefighters were able to arrive on the scene. Several explosions that collapsed walls took place during the two hours the old building burned. Several trees surrounding Old Main were badly scorched by the flames.

Ironically, much like the December 22, 1921 fire at the neighboring building now called the “Old Main Annex,” firefighters were hindered by low water pressure. Fire hydrants on this part of campus were still located at the end of that branch of the City’s water main system and continued to suffer from low water pressure.

After a long series of investigations, it was concluded that arsonists were believed to have started this devastating fire along with an unsuccessful fire at the ROTC Pistol Range Building. Authorities were never able to determine who started the fires. In the summer of 1970, the rubble was cleared and the site was planted in grass, shrubs and trees. During the 1990-91 year, a parking lot between Spruce Hall and the South College Gym complex was built where Old Main once stood. Because of its historical location, this did not happen without protests from many people affiliated with the University. Many articles appeared in the Rocky Mountain Collegian throughout September 1990 concerning the issue. 

 

 

Students at Demonstration Event, CSU. May 1970. Courtesy of the University Historic Photograph Collection, Colorado State University.

In 2015 a new Master Plan was published. It showed a new building on the Old Main site on the east side of the parking lot.

 

 

Abbie Hoffman Speaking at CSU, April 7, 1970. 

Courtesy Fort Collins Archive

 

Student demonstrations, building sit-ins, and firebrand speakers were common in 1970, says local photo collector Mac McNeill.

 

"One of those speakers was Abbie Hoffman. Hoffman, one of the Chicago Seven who disrupted the 1968 Democrat National Convention, was a well-known activist speaker. A crowd of 2,000 awaited him as he entered the Student Center, stood on his head on the stage, blew his nose on an American flag handkerchief, and said that he believed “in the violation of every law including the law of gravity.” In a speech filled with obscenities, he predicted “a long hot summer and a burning fall and winter.” For CSU the “burning” would come sooner than predicted.

 

Old Main, May 8, 1970

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UFczr4bPzpk&t=28s