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Augsburg Now: Science Hall turns 50
Winter 1999, Vol. 61, No. 2
Science Hall turns 50
"You must feel like new creatures to have this amazing Science Hall."
"This should mean much richer teaching and greater enthusiasm among students as well as teachers."
While these could have been comments heard at Homecoming '98 about the newly-renovated physics facilities, they were actually heard nearly 50 years ago at the opening of Science Hall, as reported in the Augsburg Echo.
Growing student body creates need
The completion of the science building was sorely needed to provide classroom and office space for a campus population that had doubled in the post-war years. The College also needed better facilities to add credibility to its academic program as it was seeking national accreditation.
Ground breaking
Ground for the science building was broken in summer 1948. The cornerstone was laid in March 1949, and the building was completed the following summer when the remainder of the original Old Main was demolished. Carl Chrislock wrote in From Fjord to Freeway that the cost of the new science hall "counting furnishings and fixtures" was $575,000. For those curious, among the contents placed in the cornerstone were: Luther's Catechism, the Lutheran Free Church 1948 Annual Report, the Declaration of Independence and Constitution, the Periodic Table of Chemical Elements, various catalogs and publications of Augsburg, and information about the project's fundraising.
Science Hall dedication
The 1949 Homecoming theme, "Progress Made Manifest," reflected the sense of accomplishment. "At last it is there for all to see - a beautiful new edifice dedicated to help fulfill the unending desires of intellect and spirit; and with it grows the intangible spiritual fellowship touching and enveloping each one who has fallen heir to the heritage of Augsburg," wrote "D" in an article in The Augsburg Bulletin, September 1949.
Religion and science together
The prayer and meditation chapel on the top floor was a unique feature of the new Science Hall, and even served as the site of several weddings. But, during the 1960s it gave way to a chemistry library, and the Harbo Meditation Chapel in Christensen Center is its successor.
Saving the past, moving forward
French Professor Emerita Ruth Aaskov remembers rescuing several of the light oak pews from the chapel when it closed, some of which are still in the lobbies of Old Main.
Although the opening of Science Hall did not immediately translate into accreditation for the College, it certainly gave it a needed state-of-the- art facility at the time. As Augsburg begins planning for the next new science building, it faces the task of planning for unimaginable changes over the next 50 years that will influence science education.
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