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 Cover Story
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Happy 100th Birthday, Marston Hall A group of students walks through the front door of Marston Hall, chatting about the weekend and comparing homework answers. The building’s chalky exterior contrasts with a campus greening under a spring mix of sunshine and rain. April 1900 or 2000? OK, the jeans, T-shirts, and laptop computers are a giveaway. And a peek inside Marston reveals that time and technology have not stood still. The world has changed dramatically, as has our knowledge of it, yet the physical foundation laid at the turn of the 20th century has endured as a symbol of engineering excellence as we enter the 21st. What we celebrate this year is more than just the 100th anniversary of the groundbreaking of Marston Hall. We also acknowledge Iowa State’s ascendance as a leader in engineering technology. To take a chronological tour along the Iowa State timeline is like tracing the progress of engineering itself. Power electronics. Computer advances. Genetic modification. Biosystems engineering and bioinformatics. Virtual reality. Along the way, teaching and research at Iowa State have opened horizons of understanding and prepared the pathfinders of tomorrow’s advances. Through alumni in the professional ranks and research contributions to engineering knowledge, Iowa State has expanded its influence on a global scale. Students gain experience in this country and beyond even before they graduate. The Internet opens the doors of the university to far-flung students, businesses, and the public. Engineering will continue to change, and so will the Iowa State campus. We do not know how Marston Hall will appear 100 years from now, but we do know that the name will never lose its place in Iowa State history. |
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Did you know. . . . Work on Engineering Hall started in 1900 and was completed in 1903. In 1947, the building was renamed Marston Hall in honor of Anson Marston, longtime professor and the first dean of engineering at Iowa State. Marston was informed of the honor on May 31, 1944, at a small dinner commemorating his 80th birthday. Click here for some interesting facts about the design of Marston Hall. |
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