University of Chicago - Cap and Gown Yearbook (Chicago, IL)

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John D. Rockefellefs $3,000,000 gift, but it was disapv pointing to him that all of his gift could not have been added to the endowment. One problem which had arisen was where to locate the long plzlnned'for Observatory. The matter came to :1 head when the University had the opportunity of ob mining il forty-ineh retracting lens if an observatory could be provided to house it. This Would be the worlds largest retracting telescope, just as the eighteen and one half'ineh one of the 01d University had been in its day. Mr. Yerkes came forward with enough money to build an observatory, and, after considering a number of possible sites1 Lake Geneva was chosen as the most desirl able, although Peoria offered $200,000 to induce its Ineation there. John D. Roekefeiler made his second and last appear :mee at the University in 1901, the year of the Deeennial. To commemorate lhe occasion the Press published 28 volumes in the greatest series of scientific publications ever attempted by any institution. It was at this time that the Corner stones of the Tower group were laid. These buildings were made possible by C. L. Hutchiw son, Leon Mandel. H. E McCormick, J J Mitchell. J. Reynolds, :md 11 D. Rockefeller. The Press needed better quarters than those in the old gymnasium, so Mr. Rockefeller, as mentioned prcvil ously, gave the Press building, which for a time also housed the Law SehooL the General Library, and the Bookstore, The Law SChooI was founded when Mr. Rockefeller agreed to the use of $90,000 of his $2,000,, 000 gift for a library. The present Law Building was put up in 1904 on funds advanced by him until u ILlOIIOI' could he found who had the desire to have his name affixed to it. Theodore Roosevelt laid the corner stone and in his speech he said, n'We need to produce not genius, not hrilliancy, but, the homey. com: 1 monlpktce elemental virtues? 1 Hitchcock Hall, the gift of Mrs. K Hitchcock as a memorial for her 1 husband. was completed in 1902. It was then the largest of the res' idence halls. a coeducational system, so the outcome of the infant western universitfs policy of absqute equality of men and Women students was awaited wnth intense misgiving-not only among Americans but also among the foreign visitors who were drawn to Chicago by the Columbian Exposition But women quickly took an important place in the intel' Ieetual life of the campus, and, while in 1901 the sexes were segregated in the Junior College, it wals not so for long. The fuel was established that women were to be accorded opportunity and consideration equal to that granted to men. Many questions arose. How would the women eon! duct themselveg under the temptation of the elective .svstem': How could they resist the demorulization of being domiciled in college halls separated only by a stretch of greensward from the merits halls on the other side of campus? And last, but not least, were they phys' ieztlly strong,r enough to stand the mental strain of 1'nte1- Ieetuzllly competing with the men? Elizabeth Messick, a tall, dark'eyed girl from Memphis, was one of the first Women to arrive. Finding the Univer- sity of Chicago consisted of little more. at that time, than one buildingY and a lot of prairie, she was at a complete loss for hoarding accomodatinns Undaunted, she adjusted her little patent leather visored hat, wrapped her circular cape closer ahout her slim bodv, marched up to President Harper's door and informed him of her arrival! President Harper. with his usual kindness and ingenuity, assisted in her orientation. 11 was women of just such courage that were drawn to the new University: many, no doubt, attracted by the gradute courses as well as the undergrad- uate courses. Most of these young women were from Southern and Eastern homes. Intellectual standards ware not lowered by the admittance of women; in fact, f'l I 11-h 3m .' oi '1 ' .- ,1? . 1. The School of Education was established in 1901 when the Chi; cago Institute, founded by Mrs. Edwonds Blaine, was committed to the University. Three primary and secondary schools were ah- sorhed as laboratories. Mrs. J. Y. Seammon contributed the land on which Elaine and Belhefd Halls were erected and dedicated in 1904. The latter building was named in honor of H. H. Belfield who had been principal of the Chicago Manual Training: School from the time of its establishment to the time it became the Univer' sity High Schoolr Women and Heroes in the Nineties In the early nineties most edu- cational authorities cfisapproved of I Harper at his best. Courtesy of the Chicago Daily News. mPH FUNCTION OF gonna: inntm WE CHIQAGO DAILY NEWS. ,1

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the fence from the new women's dormitories, inspired the poet of 1893 to write, Oh! there were more profs than students, but then . we didn't care; They spent their days in research, their evenings at the Fair. And life upon the campus was one continual swing; We watched the Ferris Wheel go round, and didn't do a thing. The first dormitory for women had been the Beatrice Apartment Hotel. a six-story. building still standing at :the corner of 77th and Dorchester. It was built to house visitors to the .Colurnbian Exposition, hence when the Fair opened in the spring of 1393, the girls moved into Snell Hall on the quadrangles, a handier place for noc turnal serenades. In the fall quarter the men moved. into Snell; the women into the newly completed Kelly, Beecher, and Foster H3113. Mrs. Foster had increased her original gift in order to make the hall five stories high, and late1 she provided funds for Green as an annex to Foster. New buildings went up rapidly. Walker was dedicated at the fourth convocation in 1893; Kent dedlcated January 1,1394 for which occasion Lorado Taft made a baswelief of Mr Sidney A. Kent. Ryerson, given in memory of: the donor's father, was dedicated July 2, 1394. The President's house was finished in 1895'. As the million dollar building fund failed to provide for a library, gymnasium. or press building, it was decided. to erect a temporary structure for all in the center of the northeast quadrangle. now Hutchinson Coutt This structure was made as- cheaply as possible of red brick, with tnhber trusses supporting the roof, but without a permanent foundation The trusses extended above the building and 'resemhle'd huge isaw horsesehard to imagine! It was not in any senne a beautiful building but it served many purposes. The men .5 gymnasium as we11 as the women s 'was in it. Around 'the walls of this' gym was a running 'traek with twelve laps to the mile at the time the best indoor track in 'the west. This'blot on' the la'ndgcapg was removed hit bv hit, 'for in 1901 Mitchell; Tower and Hutchinson Hall replaced the women's-gyrn. In 1903, Ten- n1 2 ! ' ' 3. 'At-m: ' fFu-r -- .19 1 . .11.:.M 0 The Old Gym - an early archite ct ural monstrosity. the remainder was removed to clear an approach to Mandel Hall and the Reynolds Club which were then nearing completion. The second building period of the University opened with the Quinquennial in 1896. In that year Haskell Oriental Museum and the Hull' Biological Laboratories were completed. The latter was the gift of Miss Helen Culver who requested that they be named for H1111. The most important part of the Quiriquennial was the founder's 5151: visit to the campus. He was given :1 won: derful reception by the students who lustily sang: John D. Rockefeller, wonderful man is he: Gives all his spare change to the U. of C. The Convocation that year was held in a large tent in the center 0f the Quadrangles, and Mr. Rockefeller made an address in which he said of the University: 11It 1's the best investment I ever made in my life . . . the good Lord gave me the money and how could I withold it from Chicago? Beginning in 1893 and continuing until 1910 there was a struggle to meet the budget. Mr. Rockefeller nearly always arranged to meet the defzcit, and usually gave a million dollar Christmas present for the endowment. But it was becoming evident to Rockefeller and Dr. Harper that the Universitv was organiZed on a. vaster scale than its resour'ces could justify. So in 1895' Rockefeller gave ' three million dollars, with the understanding that two million must'be raised by other gifts. This necessitated a third strenuous campaign. Miss Helen Culver gave one million and Wlth gifts from Mr. Charles Hitchcock Marshall Field. Elizabeth Keilv.Char1es L Hutchinson, W. F. .E GUrley, Iohn L. Mitchell Martin A. Rverson, Catherine Bruce. Mrs. B. E. Gallup. Mrs. Edmonds Blaine, Nancy S. Faster, and Mrs. Caroline Haskell, there was almost enough to make up the two millions. 'An e1'1tra three months were granted 1'11 which to raise it, but would have proved insufficient had not F. T. Gates obtained enough pledges to make up the shortage. Most of the money, as You note, was put into builtiings bearing .the gi-irers' names. The Press and Power Plant came from

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o The football team of 1893 The thrand Old Manta initial 2f. fort. the average ability and echo: larship of the women exceedv ed that of the men. They defied the Victorian concepe tion that a woman was a helpless, fluttery individual. But the social tab005 of the time could not be lightly over- looked. nIt is not regarded quite nice, I believe, wrote Robert Herrick concerning the University in an 1895 Scn'bner's Magazine, ' f 0 1' young women to' walk about the campus With the men, or to gossip and flirt in the public recitation rooms. A high de1 gree of social propriety was maintained; women did not drink or smoke, and social functions were very properly Conducted and supervised. The women's residence halls functioned as clubs. After a girl had-been' in re? 1- idence one quarter as a guest, she was either elected to membership, or politely dismissed to hnd other housing accomodations. Dances were held monthly in the reception room of each hall. and romance of a dignified type flourished. Afternoon tea in individual rooms was a popular custom even then. The young ladies conducted themselves with decorum. -It must be remembered that the University was a Baptist institution. N0 card playing was allowed at mixed gatherings. Dancing at first was allowed only in University buildings, but gradually approved hotels were used for student dances. The need for organization among the women on the campus was not imminent for several years, but in 1901 the Board of Student Organizations authorized a commis' sion, headed by Dean Marion Talbot, to organize the Women's Union of the University of Chicago. The object was to unite all the women in the University for the promotionrof their common interests. Many distin- guished women were guest speakers; receptions and env tertainmente were given weekly. But back in 1894 the beginnings of the present club system had been made. Sororities had tried to establish chapters, but had met with definite opposition. The Uni versity had by then provided ample housing facilities for its women students, and its executives objected to the outside control indicated by the sororities. However,- three highly esteemed young ladies asked permission of Mrs. Palmer and Dean Talbot to form a selective'elub for 'lliterary and social purposes. Having secured the permisv sion Of the President, Mrs. Palmer and Dean Talbot; these girls organized Soon other groups fpllow'ed their example, and the present club system was-established. The clubs, unlike sororities, were under the supervision of the Uni! versity and subject to its regulations. The date that rated highest among the girls of the University was an invitation to a tallyho ride. The young lady and her escort went up'town on the I. C. to a livery Twelve stable, then rode back to a footballgame in a coach drawn by four sleek black horses T Tallyho. Be sure that all dunng this period of expansion and adjustment camp-us life was proceeding merrily on its way. Student activities were considered an important part of the University. Chicago's famous coach, Amos 'Alonzo Stagg, held foot! ball practice in Washington Park on the hrst clay of school, 1892. With a very small number of men the team man! aged to tie their first game, which was with Northwestern. This was the beginning of the rivalry which has continued ever since. Their hrst and only collegiate victory that year was over Illinois 00-10. A more close examination of those early days leaves one in no doubt about the emphasis that Chicago then placed on athletics. It was a leader not only in competition but also fostered intercollegiate athletics, being, in fact, instrumental in the formation of the Western Conference ethe Big Nine. From 1892 until the turn of the century most of the competition was With city high schools, scrub teams from Y.M.C.A.'s, and various companies. During this time of-disorganized athletics C'clirty football and games played on weekday afternoonsy Chicago 'became famous in the Mid-west; twice leading the conference. In '96 the school tied for the title With WisconSin and in 99- Chicago and Stagg Woh their hrst undisputed championship Baseball and tennis, the other big sports of the time were veritable u pushovers for Chicago. She held the tennis title in both singles ahcl doubles from '94 through '00 except for a loss in doubles in '99, and the baseball title from '95 through '98. Those. were the days of the famous Herschberger, when even the coach got in and played 1f necessary iStagg was a famous pitcher? Mar shall Field, later renamed Stagg Field; was made p054 sihle as earlv as 1898 bv the combined gifts of' Red: efeller and Marshall Field, and in 1904 Bartlett Gymnav slum Was contnbuted by A C. Bartlett