University of Minnesota - Gopher Yearbook (Minneapolis, MN)

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The University of Minnesota Recop iizing the unfavorable coiirlitions as to soil and drainage, he early advised removal to a more favorable locality. Such removal was not eftected in his day. When his successor, Professor Edward D. Porter, came, in 1881 and had devoted a year to investigation, he rcc- oninicndcd that the farm be sold and a new one with good soil be purchased; that the Campus be utilized as an illustrative Arboretum and horticultural grounds; that tanners ' lectiu ' e courses be pushed to every commu- nity in the state and other important lines of work be organized and operated. While Professor Porter ' s tireless energy was felt in every line of work within the College, his special ambi- tion was to organize and develop a First Class Ex- periment Station. And of such, indeed, he succeeded in laying the foundations. Upon this foundation one of the best and most successful experimental fanus and experimental stations in the country has been btiilt up. The Regents olitaiiied authority from the legislatiu ' e, in 1881. and sold the A Farmhouse. The General Museum — Geolagy and Mineralogy. farm by ])latting it into two hundred and eighty-one lots as the Regents ' Addition to Minneapolis, and auctioning the same at public sale. About $150,000 was thus realized from an original investment of $8,000 and some lots are still on hand. The sale of the Minnetonka fruit farm authorized by the legislature of 1S89, has made possible still other advances. Such helps secured through the

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A Touchdown. Save in the erection upon it of the buildings, tliis piece of gi-onnd remained almost as nature left it until 1894-. In that vear tlic j rounds were laid out by a distinguished landscape gardener and the legislature appropriated $12,500 the following winter for their improvement. Accordingly driveways have been opened, stone sidewalks have been laid, the surface has been graded, and a well- planned system of improvemcntshas been begun. Rejiresenting a total cost to the state of less than $80,000, it stands at current prices for several times that amount. It was planned iji . . v Hy,.- m. . ' ' ' SO ' s to make the Campus a t S i S mt TX ' ■. ? L, f 3K grand Arboretum in which to grow every tree and shrub that would thrive in the state. The project was, for practical reasons, given up almost before any work and experimentation in that direction had been instituted. After the decision to o])en teaching colleges of law and medicine, it was soon realized that this gi-ound would be needed for the rapidly developing lecture-room and laboratory work of the institution. The group of buildings which has sprung up as by magic, even now proves the wisdom of the step then taken. The Campus, enlarged by these several increments, contains fifty acres. It is of magnificent extent and surpassinglv beau- tiful in situation for a seat of learning. It stands in the very heart of a flourishing commer- cial and business center. The Agricultural Col = lege Farm. In accordance with the ret|uirenients of the act ofreorgani2ation,the Re- gents in 1868 purchased the Agricultural College Farm, a quarter of a mile east of the original University Campus. All preliminarj ' arrange- ments were made and the Regents announced that so soon as the farmers send us a sufficient number of their sons, this department of the institution would be in a flourishing condi- tion. Many lines of experimentation were entered tipon during the subsequent years. Between 1875 and 1880 gieat activity was shown by Professor Lacy. The Barn. The University of Minnesota — 17 —

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advance in values can be realized only in the vicinity ol dense population and large commercial interests. With the sum reali7.cd the present magnificent farm ol two hundred and fitty-tour acres has been ])in-chased, farm house and b:irn erected, equipment and every facility for lesearch work provided, and all without the appropriation of a single dollar by the state. The Geological and Natural History Survey. An important adjunct of the scientific work of the Universit.v is the Geological and Natural History Survey of the State. This was organized in 1S72 and placed under the direction of the Board of Regents. It still continues — a t|uarter of a century of scientific research conducted by a state upon its own domain. The original cost of this work was $1,000 per year; thiswas soon increased to $2,000, and in 1875, and subsequently, a ([uantity of Salt Spring lands, 38,64-3 acres, was turned over to the Regents to be disbursed in accordance with the law ordering the survey. This land at the minimum price of $5.00 per acre, for which it could be sold, will eventually enable the Regents to realize over $200,000. The amount already sold h a s brought over $75,000. The cash appropria- tions which the state has at various times voted for the mainte- nance of this work amount at date to $50,000, notincluding cost of printing. The survey is com- prehensive in its scope. The fields of investiga- tion named in the original act are geol- ogy, botany, zoology and meteorology. Two maps, a geologic and topographic, were also provided for; the latter, on approval, to become the official map of the state. A museum was also contemplated, which should exhibit to the people of the commonwealth in an orderly and scientific way its natural resources as discovered Ijy the survey. The geological exploration of the state was first prosecuted. Botany, zool- ogy, meteorology and topography are to follow, in order, unless economy and efficiency can be secured by joint operations. The results of these investigations thus far available, are to be found in a series of annual reports covering almost a c|uarter of a century- of geologic work; three volumes of the final report on the geology of the state; two brief reports of the State Zoologist, accompanied by a study of the birds of .Minnesota by Dr. P. L. Hatch, and a synopsis of the Entomos- traca of Minnesota by C. L Herrick and C. H. Turner; one report of the State Botanist, containing an exhaustive review of the MetasperniEe of the Minnesota river valle3 ' ; a series of bulletins, containing geological, botanical and zoological papers, besides many scientific papers from less comprehensive fields of study. m ' The Gei era! Museum — A Zoological Alcove. The University of Minnesota — 19-