View of ruins after fire destroyed the first Engineering Building on Friday, 13 March 1925.

View of ruins after fire destroyed the first Engineering Building on Friday, 13 March 1925. Two unidentified men standing among ruins.

View of ruins after fire destroyed the first Engineering Building on Friday, 13 March 1925.

View of twisted metal after fire destroyed the first Engineering Building on Friday, 13 March 1925.

View of construction of Engineering Building addition; winter scene.

Bio/Historical Note: The modern day Engineering Building was built on the foundations of the original Engineering Building which was destroyed by fire 13 March 1925. Construction began the following June with an expected completion date of 1 November 1926. Gentil J.K. Verbeke of Saskatoon designed the new building, which was initially budgeted at $277,150. In reality the project would run well into February 1926 and eventually cost $304,169.65. The still uncompleted Engineering Building was occupied by the college in January 1926. Similar in design to its predecessor, the new Engineering Building featured a few noteworthy improvements. These included skylights for the top floor and individual lights for the draughting tables, a smoking lounge for students, and a new library and reading room. The new building contained 89,000 gross square feet of space, and also housed the dean and assistant dean’s offices, about 15 staff offices, drafting rooms, several lecture rooms, laboratories and postgraduate student offices. In 1939 the west wing of the new building was extended northward to house the Mechanical Engineering laboratories and the welding shop. An extension of the tractor lab was completed on 7 February 1941 for $33,188.60. The extension was designed by Gentil J.K. Verbeke and was built by Shannon Bros. Construction. A full addition to the west wing also designed by Verbeke was completed in 1946 by W. C. Wells Contractors for $31,890. The official opening of the west wing took place on 10 February 1948. In 1949 a World War II Air Force hangar was adjoined to the building to provide “temporary” space for the college. In the fall of 1961 the Evan A. Hardy Laboratory was completed as part of greater construction on the building. The laboratory project included extensive space for the Department of Agricultural Engineering, the Agricultural Engineering Research and Development Section and the Divisions of Hydrology and Control Systems. The project was completed in 1963 for $611,761; it was constructed by W.C. Wells Construction. The lab was designed by architect J. K. Verbeke while the further addition was designed by the architectural firm of Webster, Forrester and Scott. In the late 1970s the Engineering Building would undergo drastic renovations.

View looking northeast of first Engineering Building. Road and landscaping in foreground.

Students sit on wooden bleachers in the Engineering Tractor Laboratory.

Image of Engineering students seated in Room 130 during a lecture in the Engineering Building. W.B. Baker, Director, School of Agriculture, seated in foreground.

View of construction of the Dean of Agriculture's Residence. An unidentified man stands facing camera in foreground; railway car visible in background.

Bio/Historical Note: The Dean of Agriculture’s residence was among the first buildings on campus. Designed by Brown & Vallance of Montreal, the original plan called for a wood-clad structure but this was abandoned when the Board of Governors decided in May 1911 to use local greystone. Unlike several of the larger buildings, the Dean’s residence was built by university employees with the assistance of day labourers. Construction took less than a year and costs ran to nearly $25,000. Sometimes known as the “Grey Gables,” the building’s first resident was William J. Rutherford, first Dean of Agriculture. The location of the house, on campus close to the University Farm, reflected the unique relationship of the Agricultural College with the university. In addition to a family residence, the adjourning grounds were used on occasion as the site for outdoor receptions and social gatherings. Talk of starting a Faculty Club at the University of Saskatchewan started in 1921, but a club was not established until 1927. The centre for the club was a reading room in the College Building; and the club's major purpose became sponsoring a series of lectures by faculty members. Slowly, over the years, the club was also opened to other than faculty members: in 1937, government researchers were allowed to join; as were senior administrative personnel in 1959; and by 1962, a degree was no longer a requirement of membership. By 1974, most administrative officers were permitted to join.
A controversial issue of the 1940s was to admit women members of faculty to the club. At a 19 November 1943 meeting, J.R. Fraser moved, seconded by J.B. Harrington, that women members of staff be admitted to the Faculty Club.” There was an amendment, moved by J.F. Leddy, seconded by A.P. Arnason “that the name of the club be changed to the Men’s Faculty Club.” The amendment carried. So the club was called the Men’s Faculty Club for four years, until 21 March 1947 when on a motion of Ansten Anstenson, seconded by J.B. Harrington “that the name of the club be changed to the University of Saskatchewan Faculty Club and that women members of the faculty be admitted.” Carried. The last Dean to live in the house was Victor E. Graham who moved out in 1961 so the building could be converted into a faculty club, which opened in 1962. The building underwent two more renovations in 1966 and 1975. The latter was the most extensive, at a cost of $607,961, and established the footprint of the building as it exists today. At 3:00 pm on 19 September 1972, a fire that had been smoldering in the roof insulation for hours became apparent inside the club. The building was evacuated and an alarm called into the Fire Department. Six units were eventually dispatched to battle the “stubborn” fire before a crowd of several hundred onlookers. No one was injured and the building was saved from catastrophic damage. The Faculty Club is now known as the University Club. The club closed in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and plans to re-open in 2022.

Looking northwest at Dean of Agriculture's Residence.

View looking northeast of University buildings (l to r): Qu'Appelle Hall, Saskatchewan Hall, and the Dean of Agriculture's Residence. Landscaping, road and power pole in foreground.

View looking northeast of the Dean of Agriculture's Residence, later known as the Faculty Club. A swing is visible to left of residence; Engineering Building in background.

View of Griffiths Stadium with bleachers at left, football field and scoreboard at centre, and bleachers at right. University buildings in background are Hangar Building, Engineering Building, and feed (grain) elevator.

Bio/Historical Note: Prior to 1936, the University of Saskatchewan football team played its home games at Cairns Field on the corner of Avenue A (now Idylwyld Drive North) and 25th Street West. Athletic Director E.W. (Joe) Griffiths longed for a ‘‘home field’’ and had lobbied for its construction since his arrival on campus in 1919. Merits of the project were debated back and forth but little progress was made. In 1935 a student-organized bowling tournament raised $275 and kick-started the process. C.J. Mackenzie, first Dean of Engineering, next seized the initiative by organizing and chairing the U of S Stadium Fund Association. The plan was to fund construction in stages with donations from “students, graduates, faculty and well-wishing business men of the community.” Architectural plans, supplied “gratis” by faculty of the College of Engineering, envisioned a structure costing $25,000 whose final stages would include a grand entrance, bus mall, dressing rooms, showers, etc. The corner of College Street and Cumberland Avenue, site of the ill-fated 1912 City Hospital project, was chosen as the stadium location. Although tenders were initially called for, the University decided to build the project itself using primarily student labour. With the Depression showing no signs of lifting, the University saw the stadium as an opportunity to give financial aid to several students who were in danger of having to discontinue their studies. Sod was turned 17 May 1936, under the supervision of Professor A.R. Greig, Superintendent of Buildings; construction was carried out through the summer. The first stage of the original Griffiths Stadium was officially opened 3 October 1936 amid speeches, bands and a parade. In front of 2,000 fans, the University of Saskatchewan Huskies beat the Alberta Golden Bears 5-3. Decades later, the widening of College Drive and the desire for a new stadium combined to fuel construction of today’s Griffiths Stadium, a few hundred metres east of the original site. It was officially opened 23 June 1967. Improvements were made in 1988 to accommodate the Jeux Canada Games.

Looking southeast at Physical Education Building; landscaping work in foreground.

Elevated view looking east of University buildings from l to r: Engineering Building, Main Barn, and Physical Education Building. Greenhouses in foreground.