Central Campus

Central Campus The Dome that rests atop Beardshear Hall was almost never a part of Iowa States’ architectural wonders as it was removed from the original budget due to a lack of funding. Beardshear Hall has a very rich history that dates back to over a century ago. Beardshear Hall has been an integral part on campus even before it was fully completed, housing multiple programs, which were eventually transferred to other buildings, as more administrative space was needed. The story of Beardsheer hall unfortunately starts with not one but two great tragedies in Iowa State Universities’ architectural history. The history of Beardshear Hall begins in 1900 when the north wing of Old Main was destroyed by a fire. The fire prompted the “college” to discuss a new main campus building, however, there was a question of where to construct the new building. The location would be resolved when there was a second fire at Old Main on 14 August 1902. The fires of Old Main played a crucial part in the design of the new building. The architecture firm Proudfoot and Bird incorporated the use of fire proof buff Bedford stones all through out the building.
The architects were required to incorporate fireproof materials so that it would not fall victim like its predecessor. This was very important, as the new hall would house the library, which was moved from Morrill Hall in 1913 and remained there until 1925. In fact the only flammable things in the hall were the furniture pieces in the offices. No formal completion date was ever recorded and it was determined that “As soon as any of the rooms in Central Hall are ready for occupancy they will be occupied"(Day 172). Brooks Borg Skiles Architecture Engineering, whose predecessor was the original architecture firm that built Beardshear Hall, completed the most recent renovations in 2003.
Beardshear Hall is a living part of this campus, always updating the systems and having even more detail added to the already