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University Hall (1871-1938)

Posted on by Salvatore De Sando
University Hall and Altgeld Hall
From left to right, the Law Building (Harker Hall), University Hall, and the Carillon Tower of the Altgeld Hall Library Building, found in Record Series 39/2/20, Box BUI – University Hall.

The turn of the century Illinois campus featured three towers along Green Street (seen above). While Altgeld Hall remains today, its two-towered peer building is gone. On Wednesday, September 13, 1871 the cornerstone was laid for the new multiple purpose University building later known as “University Hall”. The formal dedication was Wednesday, December 10, 1873, and Illinois Governor J.L. Beveridge gave the address. For seventy-six years, University Hall served most of the University population. Today, the Illini Union stands on University Hall’s former site, and all that physically remains is the bell, the clock, and the sandstone portal entrance (now, since 1998, at the Hallene Gateway Plaza).

Continue reading “University Hall (1871-1938)” →

Campus Eateries and Hangouts: The Green Tea Pot

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RS 39/2/25 box 3
Alta Gwinn Saunders, Associate Professor of Business English

Written by Anna Trammell

Students today have an overwhelming number of dining options and they can stop in at any one of the numerous Starbucks or Espresso Royale locations for a cup of coffee or tea. In 1916 there were fewer options. The entrepreneurial women of Delta Gamma saw this as a business opportunity.

The perfect chapter house had gone on the market at the corner of Mathews and Nevada, but the women of Delta Gamma did not have the funds to purchase it. The Delta Gamma Alumnae Association decided to open up a tea room to earn the money to pay for the new house. The effort was championed by Alta Gwinn Saunders, a founder of the Delta Gamma Iota chapter. Saunders was an Associate Professor of Business English from 1917-1948 and was heavily involved in Delta Gamma throughout her career. [1] Continue reading “Campus Eateries and Hangouts: The Green Tea Pot” →

Republican President comes to Champaign-Urbana… in 1911

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Written by Ellen Swain

The Republican National Convention has taken center stage in Cleveland this week.

One of Ohio’s famous Republican politicians has a connection to the University of Illinois!

President Taft reviews the University of Illinois cadet regiment, 1911.

 

In February 1911, President William Howard Taft (1857-1930) toured Champaign-Urbana and the University of Illinois.  Taft is the only U.S. President (1909-1913) who also served as a Supreme Court Chief Justice (1921-1930). His visit included a tour of the University grounds and a review of the cadet regiment. “To see so many young men and women preparing themselves to meet the problems of life is indeed a rare pleasure,” Taft told the crowd gathered to hear his remarks. Read more about his celebrated visit and his interesting prediction for the cites of Champaign and Urbana in the Urbana Courier-Herald.

 

 

Wheelchair Athletes’ 1962 Tour of South Africa and Rhodesia

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Paraplegics Tour of South Africa Program
Paraplegics Tour of South Africa Program

Cailin Cullen is a student in the Graduate School of Library and Information Science and is currently completing a practicum at the Student Life and Culture Archives.

On June 11, 1962, a group of seventeen wheelchair athletes gathered at the University of Illinois for an orientation regarding their upcoming trip to Africa. For three full days, thirteen men and four women practiced their skills in track, field, basketball, archery, square dancing, cheer-leading, bowling, and chair handling skills. During this time, the group also met with Timothy Nugent, the University of Illinois Rehabilitation Center Director, and John Powell, an instructor in Physical Education and a former instructor at Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa.

The idea for the trip was imagined by Tom C. Knowles, the manager of Tom Tit’s Travel Agency in Grahamstown, South Africa. Knowles suffered a service injury during his time in the Royal Air Force and utilized a wheelchair. He heard about the University of Illinois Division of Rehabilitation Education Services (DRES) Program from his friend, John Powell. In an effort to spark public interest in his country for greater opportunity for disabled individuals, Knowles organized a tour and raised the funds for it.[1] Continue reading “Wheelchair Athletes’ 1962 Tour of South Africa and Rhodesia” →

A Life in Words: A Look Back at the College Career of Roger Ebert

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Roger Ebert (Photo)
Roger Ebert, circa 1967. RS 26/4/1.

Zack Stein is a graduate student in Library and Information Science at the University of Illinois. He is currently completing a practicum at the Student Life and Culture Archives.

It has been nearly three years since the death of Roger Ebert. To most of us, he was one of the most famous film critics in history. He wrote weekly reviews for the Chicago Sun-Times, co-hosted a film review show with fellow Chicagoans Gene Siskel and Richard Roeper, and started his own film festival which has been held at the Virginia Theater in Champaign for the past 17 years. He also was the first film critic to win the Pulitzer Prize for Criticism. While film was his subject of expertise, his true drive and passion was his love affair with the written word. A voracious reader of science fiction and Henry James, Mr. Ebert knew from an early age that he wanted to be a writer. It was his time as the editor of the Daily Illini at the University of Illinois where he was able to exercise his writing to the fullest. It was also his abrasiveness that got him noticed and earned him the respect he deserved. Continue reading “A Life in Words: A Look Back at the College Career of Roger Ebert” →