A Treasure of the Campus Turns 100

A double rainbow crowned Memorial Building one day early in March, as if in homage to the grand old building on its 100th birthday.

Built when most of the present campus was a field of rye grass, Memorial opened with ceremony on March 5, 1900, with president Stephen Penrose presiding. A week later, the library was moved into the new building, and its science laboratories opened.

Constructed at a cost of $43,792, the building was financed by Chicago philanthropist D. K. Pearsons, who has the distinction of having financed the two oldest buildings still standing on campus. In 1909, he gave $50,000 for a music conservatory. The stately building (below left) was recently restored and renovated into the Hunter Conservatory and Center for Communication Arts and Technology.

While Memorial Building and Hunter Conservatory continue to serve as symbols of Whitman's tradition and history, the College meets the future with plans for construction of the Reid Campus Center (see "Meet me at Reid Center").