123 years later


The history of CMU's building and mascot names


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A historical photo of Moore Hall kept by Clarke Historical Library. 

Central Michigan University has survived three fires and expanded more than four times its original size since 1892.

When students walk to class on campus, they pass buildings each with names they may not be able to recognize. 

Anspach Hall was built to have social sciences in 1966. It housed Sociology, English, History and Political Science Departments, as well as being the original home of WCMU-TV. The building was dedicated on April 8, 1967 in honor of Charles Anspach, former president of the university.

“Anspach is an interesting name because most freshman don’t realize how to actually pronounce it until we were told,” said Grand Blanc freshman Kory Hobbs. “I heard from someone it was a Native American name, but it’s cool to know its after a former president.”

Dragons to Chippewas

Prior to 1925, CMU had no mascot. For a short period of time, the mascot was the Dragons because of a costume worn at the homecoming game in 1925. Most of the teams were just known as the “boys of Central” because there were only men’s teams.

In November of 1941, Govers, a store previously located where Student Book Exchange was, held a contest to choose a new nickname. CMU was renamed the Bearcats after the contest.

Lawrence M. “Doc” Sweeney was the coach of almost every sport at CMU and was instrumental in changing the name from Bearcats to Chippewas.

“The name was changed because during the 1940s there was pageantry associated with Native American names,” said Bryan Whitledge, reference librarian assistant at Clarke Historical Library. “Although we were known at the Chippewas, there was never really any mascot associated with it after the 1950s. A Native American head may be spotted on football helmets, but the spearhead is more prominent on sports gear. In 1989, the university stopped using imagery completely and did a study about the Chippewa tribe.”

Central Michigan has sported a few logos, for a brief period of time the Chippewa head dress was present on helmets and gear. After the controversy of the indian head, the spear head became more prominent and was less offensive. In 1989 there was no more native american imagery allowed on sports gear, the logo then became just block letters "CMU" on football helmets.

The logo is now a stylized block letter "C", referred to as the "flying C." The current version of the athletic trademark was first used in 1997 and was designed by an IET Department undergraduate student in 1995. Due to a trademark issue the "flying C" isn't actually flying, its called the "action C" instead.

A big moment in mascot history was when the National College Athletic Association listed CMU as a school using hostile and abusive names in 2005. The Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe sent in a letter saying they were not offended and supported CMU using the name for their sports teams. Now a days, due to many offensive costumes President George Ross sends out a reminder in the beginning of each school year to remind students of what is appropriate.

Powers Hall was built in 1939 as the student union and first men's residence hall on campus. The 90-bed residence hall is now known as the old section of Barnes Hall.  A renovation in 1960 reconstructed and soundproofed Powers Hall for the arrival of the Music Department. The building was dedicated as Powers Music Building in 1966 for the former head of the music program at CMU.

Barnes Hall started as a dormitory wing of the new Student Union, then known as Keeler Union, which is now Powers Hall. The building was founded through a Public Works Administration Grant, through Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s New Deal. The building was dedicated to Charles C. Barnes, born in 1886 and head of the commerce department in 1920. Barnes was promoted to Registrar and made the first Dean of Men, an administrator responsible for the affairs of male students.

Brooks Hall opened in 1965 as the largest building on campus. The building was named for a former faculty member and head of the Department of Chemistry and Physics. Kendall Brooks also served as Registrar and was the Director of the Exchange Savings Bank in Mount Pleasant, which helped CMU survive the great depression.

The Carlin Alumni house was constructed in 1941 and renovated in 1989. It was a private residence in 1941, but as campus expanded, the university purchased the residence to house the university presidents. Presidents Anspach, Foust, Boyd and Abel lived there during their tenures. The building was named for Leslie and Marge Carlin, husband and wife counseling team.

Dow Science Complex opened 1992. It was named for Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow Foundation of Midland, which provided a $2.5 million grant. The foundation was made in honor of Herbert H. Dow, founder of the Dow Chemical Company. They donate for things related to education, science and community life.

Ronald W. Finch Fieldhouse opened 1951 and remodeled in 1968. Before the construction of the Student Activity Center and Rose hall, it served as the main athletic building on campus. It was also the largest building on campus at that time. The building was dedicated in 1962 to Finch, who was the head of track and football teams until 1946 and became the first Dean of the College of Health and Physical Education.

Judson Foust Hall opened in 1973 and is now home to several CMU programs and departments such as the Counseling Center, Office of Graduate Studies and University Health Services. Judson Foust began his career at Central State Teachers College as a math instructor and authored several textbooks. 

Charles Grawn Hall opened in April 1915 and is the oldest building on campus. It was designated as the Science and Agriculture building in 1915. The building escaped destruction by fire on two occasions. The hall was named for Charles T. Grawn who was appointed by the State Board of Education as head of CMU until 1918.

Kelly-Shorts Stadium opened 1971. Originally named Perry Shorts Stadium in honor of R. Perry Shorts, a Saginaw banker who was a 1900 graduate of CMU and a donor. In 1983, the board voted to rename the stadium Kelly/Shorts Stadium in honor of Kenneth “Bill” Kelly who coached the Chippewa football team from 1951-1966.

Wilbure E. Moore Hall and Fred R. Bush Theater opened in 1971. The building had many problems during development and building. One problem was the Kiva, which connects Bush and Moore. Workers couldn’t stop it from echoing. Moore was named for the Vice President of Academic affairs from 1959 to 1970. Bush Theatre was named for Fred. R Bush who served as Director of Dramatics and University Theatre from 1939 to 1964.

Charles V. Park Library opened in 1969 and was renovated in 2002. The library is named for Charles Park, who came to CMU as head librarian in 1931. The original cornerstone of the library contained Richard Nixon’s inaugural address and a report on the war in Vietnam.

Webster Houstan Pearce Hall opened fall 1967. It was included in a three-building classroom complex composed of Brooks and Anspach. Pearce became a professor at CMU in 1916 and was also the mayor of Mount Pleasant from 1921 to 1927.

Bertha M. Ronan Hall opened in 1955. It was originally a library and was dedicated in 1956. The building was originally called Park Library, but then switched to Ronan. There was an older building that was demolished in 1970 that also had been named Ronan. Bertha was a professor in the department of physical education and the Dean of Women.

Lucy A. Sloan Hall opened 1941 as the third residence hall on campus. In 1963, the building was designated as Sloan Panhellenic House and housed eight sororities. In 1970, the building was converted into offices and now houses the psychology department. The building was named after Lucy A. Sloan, who was a preceptress of Central Michigan Normal School, and founded the first literary society for women in 1912.

Rose/Ryan building was opened in 1973 and is the home of all basketball and volleyball games. The Chippewas play on the wooden court, purchased in 1986, which was only used once prior for the 1986 NBA All-Star game. The building was named after Grace Ryan, a teacher and authority in health and physical education, who was at CMU from 1923 to 1958.

Rowe Hall was opened in 1958 as the new teacher education center. It housed the College Elementary School, where prospective teachers gained experience working with children, as well as the Department of Psychology and Education. The building was named after the founder of the Department of Psychology and Education at Central, Eugene C. Rowe.

Warriner Hall opened in 1928, making it one of the oldest buildings on campus. Warriner Hall has served many purposes in its 73 years of existence. It was originally built as a classroom building, and it housed the English, History, Speech, Mathematics, foreign languages, Psychology and Education and parts of the Music Department until other academic buildings were built for these functions. The building was named for the CMU president from 1918 to 1939, Eugene C. Warriner.

Wightman Hall opened in 1948 and was built on the site of the former athletic field which had been used until 1930. It housed home economics, fine arts and Industrial Education classes until the construction of the IET building in 1987. The building also housed the University Press. The North Art Studio, which is connected to Wightman, was designed by Dow Associates and was completed in 1976. The building is named after Elizabeth Wightman who taught in Mount Pleasant, CMU and was head of the art department.

Bovee University Center opened in 1960. The student center used to house a bowling alley on the lower-level of the current bookstore. There was also a browsing room for books, a barber shop and music room. In 1984, the UC was dedicated to the chief financial officer Norvall C. Bovee, who started his career at CMU in 1940.

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