Back of photo "A portion of university gardens where large numbers of varieties of dahlia, peony, gladiolus, and iris and many different kids of other flowers are grown."

Large group of boys and men lined up about 7 rows deep. Houses and cars in background.

Group photo of club members sitting and standing on grass in front of tents. Some boys and men holding banner that reads "Farm Boys Club." Trees, power pole, and part of building in background; location unknown.

Memorial Union Building foundation and concrete pillars visible during construction.

Bio/Historical Note: The Memorial Union Building (MUB) has the distinction of being the last building in the centre of campus designed in the collegiate gothic style and completely clad in greystone. It was designed to serve as a memorial to the students, faculty and staff of the University of Saskatchewan who perished overseas in the First and Second World Wars.The Upper MUB has been transformed several times since its formal opening on 11 Nov. 1955. It has been used as a student lounge, concert venue, pub, bookstore and coffee shop. It has hosted receptions, fashion shows, beauty and air guitar contests, club meetings, dances and political debates. During the 1945-1946 academic year a Students’ Union Building Committee was formed. The Committee outlined proposals for the new building, which included an auditorium, a ballroom, lounge rooms, a tuck shop and student offices, all for a cost of $600,000. A brief on the Committee’s findings and proposals was later presented to the Board of Governors of the University, which created a $100,000 sinking fund for construction of the building and student fees were raised $4 to raise an additional $200,000. The MUB formally opened on 11 November 1955. It was used primarily for student functions including dancing, card-playing, chess, and studying, though it never became the hub of student activities it was originally intended to be. Included in the original furnishings was a generous supply of ashtrays. In 1957 a Board of Directors was established to operate the MUB, and to promote social, cultural and recreational activities and programs for the students, faculty and alumni of the University of Saskatchewan. Due to the surge in enrolment at the University of Saskatchewan during the 1960s the student body quickly outgrew the building. Though the MUB had been designed to accommodate expansion to the south, by the 1964-1965 academic year the Students’ Union recognized the need for facilities much more extensive than even expansion could provide. As a result plans for what would eventually be the Place Riel Student Centre were born. In 1980 renovations to the MUB were completed as part of Phase III of the Place Riel Project. The renovations were designed by Ferguson Folstad Friggstad, and were completed by Bennett and White Construction. They included the demolition and removal of portions of the building, structural alterations, interior renovations including the refitting of Louis’ Pub, improvements to the elevator, and alterations and renovations to the pedestrian tunnel connected to the residences. The renovations cost $1.7 million. In 1983 an elevator was installed in the MUB for $143,600 and ramps for disabled access were constructed by Cana Construction. These improvements were designed by the Friggstad architectural firm. A 1985 renovation to the building was also designed by Friggstad. The renovations were performed by Haig Construction for $124,725. In March 2001 the Upper MUB was renovated as part of a planned relocation of the Browsers used bookstore. Included in the renovations was a snack and beverage bar as well as public access computers for Internet usage. The entire store is centred around the original war memorial, and the renovations have returned the space to its original purpose as a comfortable lounge for students.” The new Browsers opened its doors in late August 2001. During the summer of 2002 Louis’ Pub, located in the basement of the MUB, was also renovated, by contractors PCL Maxam. The renovations were designed by the architectural firm of Saunders Evans, and were performed by PCL Maxam for $5.25 million. The newly renovated Louis’ was opened in October 2002.

People walking on walkway past north wing of Murray Memorial Library during winter; Arts tower in background.

Staff and students walking past the north wing of Murray Library; Arts Building in background.

Bio/Historical Note: Though the first recorded withdrawal from the University Library occurred in October 1909, nearly five decades passed before the Library had its own building. The early collection was housed either on the second floor of the College Building (later known as the Administration Building) or was scattered among a number of small departmental libraries. Plans for a new library building in the late 1920s were ended by the start of the Great Depression; but a dramatically reduced acquisitions budget was offset by a grant from the Carnegie Corporation in 1933. In 1943 the University hired its first professional Librarian. A combination of provincial grants and University fundraising financed the construction of the Murray Memorial Library. The library was named after the University’s first President, Walter C. Murray. Designed by noted Regina architect Kioshi Izumi working under H.K. Black, Architect, it marked a change in campus architecture away from the more angular and elaborate Collegiate Gothic style to that of the less expensive cube. Building materials included granite at the entrance and Tyndall stone as a wall cladding and window trim. In addition to the library, the building housed the College of Law, an office of the Provincial Archives and a 105-seat lecture theatre equipped with the latest in audiovisual teaching aids. The most dramatic transformation took place between 1970 and 1976 when a six floor south wing was added along with an extensive renovation of the 1956 structure. Designed by BLM, Regina, the south wing was unlike any other building on campus. Clad in Tyndall stone panels made to look like concrete (through a "bush hammered" finish), the grey almost windowless building is industrial and utilitarian in appearance. The University's master plan required buildings in the core of campus to be clad in stone. However, the "bush hammered" finish was used since the Library addition was built during a period that saw the flowering of "Brutalist" Architecture, so called because of the wide use of exposed concrete. The new (south) wing, originally called the Main Library, was officially opened on 17 May 1974, and also became the home of the Department of Art and Art History, the College of Graduate Studies and the University Archives.

Four men standing in a field, possibly a construction site [on campus]; buildings, trees, horses, and people in background.

Large group of people gathered in the ballroom of the Bessborough hotel. Banner on the wall reads "75th Anniversary Engineering Institute of Canada 1887-1962".

Men and women appear to be applauding; child standing facing camera. Back of photograph: "Mrs. K. McCallum, Dr. K. McCallum, Lloyd Trevoy and one of the twins. Christmas Party, Dec. 21 1956. Chemistry Annex, Pharmacy Lounge."

[Dr. K. McCallum] smiling at a baby who is sitting on his lap. On back of photograph: "Christmas party, Dec 21/56. Chemistry Annex, Pharmacy Lounge. Mrs. Trevoy, Lloyd Trevoy and other twin"

Image of students sitting in the Chemistry Lecture Hall, Room 271, also known as the airplane room.

Bio/Historical Note: The most enduring legend surrounding the Chemistry Building states that the paper airplanes lodged in the 68-foot domed ceiling of Thorvaldson Room 271 were flung there by Second World War pilots-in-training. When the pilots went to war, the legend says, their family members would periodically visit the Airplane Room—as it became known—to see if their loved one’s plane remained stuck. If a plane fell from the ceiling, it meant that the man who put it there would not be coming home. Wartime pilots did receive training at the U of S through cadet programs and the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan, although there is no record as to whether they trained in Room 271, now called the Henry Taube Lecture Theatre. The University Air Training Corps was one of the military training units located on campus during the Second World War. This 1944 yearbook photo shows cadets training in an unspecified classroom. (University Publications, Greystone 1944)
For many years, students have attached messages or objects to paper planes and flung them up to the ceiling, where the planes stick in the material lining the dome. Student graffiti on the wooden desks of Room 271 dates back as far as 1933, but the paper airplanes are a different story. During the removal of asbestos from the ceiling in 1995, the original planes were taken down. Wayne Eyre, editor of On Campus News at the time, carefully unfolded each of the 366 airplanes but found nothing relating to the war; instead he just found what he calls “a lot of pranky and dopey comments.” The oldest date written on any plane was 1961. Other planes appeared older as they were brittle and yellow with age, but lacked dates.

Image of George Wearring sitting at a desk holding a piece of paper.

Emmanuel College in the middle of an empty field.

Three men standing by a horse-drawn cart on the construction site for Power House.

Bio/Historical Note: Excavation for the Power House was completed in May 1910, and the building itself was completed in 1912 at a cost of $118,000. It was built quickly so that it could provide heat to the other buildings under construction, allowing work to continue throughout the winter months. The building was constructed of red brick in keeping with the architecture of the neighbouring Engineering Building. A spur track was laid to the building so coal could be dumped from railcars into pockets in the ground near the boilers. A steam tunnel measuring six feet wide by seven feet high was built from the Power House to the College Building. From this main branch lateral branches ran to the Engineering Building and to the Livestock Pavilion, and from the south end of the College Building to the Residence, later named Saskatchewan Hall. These tunnels carried steam mains, return pipes, hot and cold water pipes and electric cables to the various buildings. An addition to the Power House was completed in 1923 by Smith Brothers Construction for $58,300. As part of the project two coal chutes were installed at a cost of $35 each. The addition featured a new concrete foundation and reinforced slabs, solid brick walls and partitions, a metal sash and skylights made with wired glass, and a tar and gravel roof. A contract was awarded to Shannon Brothers Construction on 3 September 1930 to perform alterations to the Power House for a sum of $21,849. The alterations were completed by New Year’s Eve of that year for $23,073.36. The Power House was demolished in 1977.

Dr. Edith C. Rowles Simpson, Dean of Home Economics, talks to a group of female high school students. Four older men in suits stand in back.