The University of Nebraska

University Hall never sat easily on its ground. J. M. McBird of Logansport, Indiana, designed it in what he called a Franco Italianate style, and J. D. Silver and Sons built it on a cornerstone laid in 1869, yet its foundation needed repairs before the first classes in the fall of 1871. The chapel's foundation was replaced in 1873, the whole foundation in 1877 and the tower's in 1893. A heavy slate roof of 1883 strained the walls further, steel rods went in by 1916, and the upper stories and mansard roof came off in 1925.

What the plaque says

The University of Nebraska Chartered as a Land-Grant institution by the first regular session of the State Legislature on February 15, 1869, the University opened its doors to 20 collegiate students and 110 preparatory school pupils on September 7, 1871. Lincoln was then a raw prairie village of about 2,400 people. University Hall, the original four-story building, stood on this site. Its lumber was hauled by wagon from Nebraska City; its brick made locally. It was finally razed in October, 1948. Despite financial crises and ideological disputes, the University survived its early years and in 1886 inaugurated the first program of graduate instruction west of the Mississippi. Recognized for its high scholastic standards, the University was accorded membership in the Association of American Universities in 1908. As a major institution of higher education, the University performed a key role in the early development of the State and continues now as a prime source of further Nebraska progress. Historical Land Mark Council

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Nebraska State Capitol — 0.8 mi
  Bertram Goodhue's 400-foot tower on the prairie, built in four phases from 1922 to 1932 and paid off on completion, home of the only one-house legislature in the country.
• Strategic Air Command & Aerospace Museum — 24 mi
  Two hangar-sized halls beside I-80 near Ashland holding the bombers and reconnaissance planes of the command that ran America's nuclear force from Offutt, south of Omaha, from 1948 to 1992.

More markers nearby

• Lincoln's Founding Block — steps away
• Pershing Rifles — 0.3 mi
• U. S. Post Office and Courthouse (Old City Hall) — 0.3 mi
• The Nebraska State Historical Society — 0.3 mi