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Spring 2024

History of University

WSU Bookie
Summer 2014

100 years of the Bookie

For a hundred years the Washington State University student-owned bookstore, affectionately known as “the Bookie,” has served as a social hub, a source of funds for the student body and, of course, the place to get textbooks and supplies.

Since it opened in 1914, the Bookie has had several homes and sold thousands of books, baseball caps, fancy fountain pens, and frozen treats. But many former students remember best those iconic Bookie bags, the Cougar gear, and the coffee. Even though the bookstore doesn’t hand them out any longer, many also remember those crisp Bookie bucks that filled their wallets at … » More …

Ferdinands
Summer 2014

The scoop on Ferdinand’s murals

Visible clouds of breath hang about as we all look upon what remains of the original murals of the Ferdinand’s ice cream shop once located in the now deserted Troy Hall.

The first home of the dairy department, Troy is in the middle of campus and in poor condition. Roped off for safety, this 1920s brick structure has been on the University’s capital planning list for renovation for a few years now. It is currently in the design stage of what is expected to be a $40 million renovation so that it can be a suitable home for environmental sciences and chemistry.

As rotting … » More …

WSU campus illustration
Spring 2014

Everyone could use a lift

It’s 9:58 a.m. and Josie Tarr is running late for her 10:10 digital storytelling class.

Getting off the bus in front of the new Northside Residence Hall, the digital technology and professional and technical writing double major sprints up the stairs between Bohler and the PE Building to get ahead of the crowds heading in the same direction: the CUB elevator.

Too late. She groans. A crowd of about 35 is already waiting.

Briefly considering her alternatives, both lengthy sets of stairs, one running up near the elevator structure and the other wrapping around it, the junior from Tacoma drops the idea as the weight … » More …

Glenn Terrell
Winter 2013

Glenn Terrell, WSU President 1967–1985: Recollections

Glenn Terrell served as Washington State University’s seventh president, from 1967 to 1985. He passed away in August at his home in Sequim. He was 93.

 

Terrell earned his bachelor’s degree in political science from Davidson College in North Carolina, his master’s degree in psychology from Florida State University, and his doctoral degree from the University of Iowa. He served in the U.S. Army during World War II and was one of the American soldiers who marched down the Champs-Elysee with Charles de Gaulle.

He began his academic career as an instructor in psychology at Florida State, later moving to the University of Colorado … » More …

Nature Boy at WSU
Fall 2013

The original story of Nature Boy

Washington State University’s sculpture “The Reader” made its first appearance on campus in 1949. The Powwow, the college’s alumni magazine, carried the following story in 1949, which showed the mixed response to the large ornament dubbed “Nature Boy” by the students.

What’s New on the Campus?

by Bonnie Wamberg
November 1949, Washington State College Powwow

Campus conversational piece de’ resistance this month concerned the 30-foot limestone figure which now adorns one corner of the new Ernest Holland Library. Student opinion and comment blew hot and cold, for and against the 40-ton ornament. Some say it is beautiful, … » More …

Bob Hanson
Winter 2012

Bob Hanson ’82—When bowling was big

Bob Hanson was just 18 when he bowled his first 300 game.

He remembers that day in 1977 when he threw 12 consecutive strikes on lanes 9 and 10 at Tower Lanes in Tacoma. At the time he was the third bowler to ever record a 300 game in the history of the Tacoma Junior League. The achievement, which made the front page of the Tacoma News Tribune, was just one of many milestones in Hanson’s 47-year career. But nothing has topped being part of the WSU men’s 1982 national championship bowling team, he says. “When you win something with the team, it is an … » More …

WSC Powwow from 1945
Fall 2012

Chinooks and Powwows at your fingertips

If you’re searching for a photo of a long-lost college friend or you want to dig into the rich history of Washington State, visit the WSU Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collection’s website to browse WSU’s yearbook The Chinook up to 1986 and most issues of The Powwow, the alumni magazine from 1910 to 1969.

All texts are searchable and can be printed, shared online, or downloaded to your own computer. You can also browse the books online and let serendipity guide you to unexpected corners of the University’s history.

“You can find not only pictures of family or friends, but what they did … » More …