New Web site offers history of UNL buildings

More than 100 years of architectural history at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln is now available at the click of a mouse.

Developed by Kay Logan-Peters, professor and chair of access branch services for University Libraries, the Web site, "An Architecture Tour of Historic UNL," went online today at http://historicbuildings.unl.edu.

"This whole project was inspired by students," Logan-Peters said. "Back in the mid-1990s we had a number of students coming in and asking for information about buildings on campus. That kind of information is not always easy to find. And, their questions got me thinking."

She said she initially planned to compile the information in book form. But, while attending a conference, a colleague suggested the project would be better presented on the Internet -- which was just coming into widespread use in the mid-1990s.

"I had realized that my audience for this kind of book would be pretty small," Logan-Peters said. "And, the Internet allows you to include so much more information, particularly pictures and architectural drawings, than a book."

Logan-Peters spent two six-month sabbaticals gathering information for the project -- first in 1996, then in fall 2007.

"I basically spent a year in the Archives, photocopying Regents minutes and digging up photos," Logan-Peters said.

Three UNL students helped her gather the information and develop the Web site. Stacey Rickel, system administrator and programmer for the University Libraries, served as technical director on the project.

The site is divided into City and East campus tours. Buildings are divided into three time periods -- 1896 to 1914, 1915 to 1927, and 1928 to 1965.

"We will be adding information about the modern buildings," Logan-Peters said. "Information about the modern structures isn't as well documented, basically because they are not historic yet. But, that's the nice thing about presenting this on the Web. We can go in and add to it or change information whenever we need to. It's very organic."

For images, Logan-Peters said she tried to find the earliest photos taken of each building. She has also included the original architectural drawings if they were available.

Along with getting a better understanding about the growth of campus, Logan-Peters said she has also learned a few things about building politics.

For example, when Brace Labs was originally proposed in 1905, it was to have a rectangular footprint. However, the northwest corner would have taken a bite out of the original NU football field.

"The Regents wanted the south walls of Brace and University Hall to line up, and the only way to do that was to take a piece of the football field," Logan-Peters said. "C.R. Richards was the head of the football committee at the time and he protested the plan."

As a compromise, DeWitt Bristol Brace, chair of physics at the time, opted to give up square footage and cut the offending corner out of the construction plans.

"The funny thing was, three years later in 1908, Richards got his building and put it right in the middle of the football field," Logan-Peters said. "Of course, that was when the university was expanding to the north. Still, it was interesting to see that football was important even back then."

CONTACT: Kay Logan-Peters, Professor, University Libraries, (402) 472-1195