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San José State University Campus Buildings Records
MSS-2010-02-03
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Table of contents
Language of Material:
English
Contributing Institution:
SJSU Special Collections & Archives
Title: San José State University Campus Buildings Records
Identifier/Call Number: MSS-2010-02-03
Physical Description:
8 boxes
(4.71 linear feet)
Date (inclusive): 1903-1999, 2019
Abstract: The San José State University Campus Buildings Records, 1903-1999, 2019 (bulk 1960-1995), document the history of major campus
buildings and landmarks, including Tower Hall, Spartan Memorial Chapel, the Scheller House, Dwight Bentel Hall and other departmental
buildings. The records consist of building reports, specifications and evaluations, brochures, committee papers, negatives,
newspaper clippings, and photographs.
The collection is open for research.
Copyright is assigned to the San José State University Library Special Collections & Archives. All requests for permission
to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Director of Special Collections. Permission for publication
is given on behalf of the Special Collections & Archives. Copyright restrictions may apply to digital reproductions of the
original materials. Use of digital files is restricted to research and educational purposes.
San José State University Campus Buildings Records, MSS-2010-02-03, San José State University Library Special Collections
& Archives.
Collection processed by R. Schuyler Selden. Finding aid EAD encoded by Silke Higgins. Reviewed by Danelle Moon and Erin Louthen.
Accurals added to boxes 2 and 6 by Eilene Lueck in 2023.
This finding aid was created as part of the Survey and Cataloging Project, a two-year San José State University Library grant
project funded by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission. The project began in 2008.The Project Director
is Danelle Moon. The Project Archivist is Erin Louthen.
In 1857 the San Francisco Board of Education established Minns' Evening Normal School for current and prospective teachers
in the city. Named after its principal, George W. Minns, the institution was formally established as the first California
State Normal School by the State Legislature in 1862. A decade later, the Legislature voted to move the Normal School to San
José, and the school relocated to its new home on Washington Square prior to the fall term of 1872. After a fire destroyed
the Normal School building in 1880, the Legislature authorized $200,000 to construct a new building on the same site. Completed
in 1881, the building was commonly referred to as the Second State Normal School. After several names and curriculum changes,
Minns' Normal School is now San José State University, offering more than 134 bachelor's and master's degrees with 110 concentrations,
and is recognized as one of the top public universities granting such degrees in the West.
Since laying the cornerstone for the San José State Normal School in 1870, the SJSU campus has expanded several times throughout
its 150-year history. Tower Hall, the centerpiece of the university, was constructed in 1910 to replace a previous building
damaged in the 1906 earthquake. The oldest structure on campus, Tower Hall was spared demolition in the 1960s and has been
renovated twice, once in 1966 and again in 2007. From the late 1920s through the 1950s, under the direction of President Thomas
W. MacQuarrie, many buildings were constructed on the SJSU campus, including the Education Building, Spartan Stadium, the
Science Building, the Student Union, and the Spartan Memorial Chapel. The campus experienced another era of major renovation
and expansion in the early 2000s, including the construction of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Library, as well as the renovation
of Clark Hall and Morris Dailey Auditorium. Today, all aspects of the maintenance, planning and sustainability of SJSU's campus
buildings are managed by the Division of Facilities Development and Operations (FD&O).
California and San José State University Master Plan for Higher Education Records, MSS-2009-03-01, San José State University
Library Special Collections & Archives.
The San José State University Campus Buildings Records, 1903-1999, 2019 (bulk 1960-1995), document the history of major campus
buildings and landmarks, including Tower Hall, Spartan Memorial Chapel, the Scheller House, Dwight Bentel Hall and other departmental
buildings. The records consist of building reports, specifications and evaluations, brochures, committee papers, negatives,
newspaper clippings, and photographs. Of particular note are three audio cassettes in Series II. dating from April 1983 that
contain the recording of the dedication by SJSU President Gail Fullerton of the re-named Richard B. Lewis Instructional Resource
Center (I.R.C.). that is located in Dudley Moorehead Hall (DMH).
This collection is arranged into two series: Series I. Campus Buildings and Landmarks, 1906-1999, 2019 (bulk 1960-1995); and
Series II. Campus Buildings History and General San José History, 1903-1999 (bulk 1960-1999).
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Historic Buildings -- California -- San José.
College buildings -- California -- San José.
California State University, San José -- History.
San José State Normal School -- History.
San José (Calif.) -- History.
San José State University -- History.
San José State Teachers College -- History.