A few months ago we asked you to share your memories of Science Hall—and you delivered!
Here’s a taste of what we’ve heard. We’ll share more as the year goes on. If the reminiscing below shakes loose any memories for you, we’d love to hear them! Share your Science Hall stories and pictures here.
Emily Catlett
BA’91, Geography & South East Asian Studies
I rowed for the team and the library was on my way to and from the Boathouse so it was a natural place to stop and study, like halfway home (I always lived by the Capital and I rode my bike on the lake trail). I think I walked into Science Hall the first week of freshman year because I love old buildings and Science Hall in ’85 was OLD then, I can only imagine what it feels like now! Holy moly!
While exploring I found the map library and was IN LOVE! The room smelled amazing, like old maps, and it was beautiful with long wooden tables, wooden chairs and I remember BIG windows! So I found the building by accident and stayed all four years. I actually decided to be a geography major because I loved the building so much.
I was also lucky enough to work with an English Geography Professor who was digitizing the Yucatan Peninsula Grain yields, and I helped digitize these massive maps by hand with this little machine. It was a student job and she was SO GREAT!! She made pots of proper English tea and her office was way up high almost in the eves of Science Hall I think and it was a spectacular view of the Quad.
I will always have fond memories of Science Hall, too many to count! One memory that happened quite often was that my rowing buddies would come to the Map Library and find me asleep with my face in a book and hide my book bag so when I woke up I would have to hunt for it. I don’t have any photos of me in or near the building, but Science Hall is etched in my memory FOREVER, I attended Fall 1985–Dec of 1989. LOVE LOVE LOVE that big old building!!!!!!!!!
Ben Cramer
BA’24, Geography, GIS/Cartography
I loved the corner study area on the third floor. With a view of the state capitol building and an assortment of chairs and a table, it was the perfect quiet place to study or hang out in between classes.
My favorite memory is presenting our Geography 565 capstone research project in Science Hall Room 180. It was the perfect culmination of a semester of hard work, and a special moment to get to present it in such a beautiful room.
Angelina Stone (Hanson)
BA’10, Geography; GIS Certificate 2015
For me, Science Hall itself was my favorite building on campus. Whether I was in room 180 on a winter’s day and the heating system sounded like ghosts playing in a band, walking up the stairs – stopping to catch my breath but also admire the colorful 3D relief maps on the walls, or working in the Robinson Map Library, where I filed the most interesting maps and aerial photography. Science Hall was my home-base as an undergrad and I am grateful for the experiences I had there.
Favorite memories: Carving pumpkins with my fellow Geography Club members, Professor Ostergren’s class on the History of European Urbanization, making friends during long hours in the GIS lab!
