RPI’s Institute Archives and Special Collections department has a lot of cool things that you might not expect to find among our rare books, manuscripts, and Institute records.  We also have a variety of artifacts, some of which are well over a century old.  Our most recent acquisition in this category is a sterling silver spoon dating from the 1890s.

An astute subscriber to RPI History Revealed recently pointed out that the Archives blog has been going strong for ten years!  In honor of the blog’s creator, Amy Rupert (a.k.a. AmytheArchivist), I think it’s time to harken back to one of her signature series - mystery images!

Every year leading up to commencement, we revisit the proud heritage that we have here at Rensselaer and offer the community glimpses into our history.  To the Class of 2016, we congratulate you and wish you the best moving forward. You too are leaving a legacy behind, as did the students in 1916.

In our last “Continuing up the Hill” post we described the acquisition of the Warren property in 1905 following the fire which destroyed the Main Building. Along with a house and stable, the property contained 10.5 acres. During the next two years the Institute purchased more land.

In our efforts to bridge the gap between the past and present, we share with the Class of 2014 a look back one hundred years ago, when Rensselaer bid farewell to the Class of 1914.

The construction of the Main Building in 1864 marked the beginning of the steady expansion of Rensselaer’s campus up the hill on Troy’s eastern edge. There were two exceptions: the Gymnasium (the subject of our December 3 post) built just below the Main Building in 1887 and the lesser known Alumni Building erected on Second Street next to the Troy Savings Bank in 1893.

Following the completion of the Main Building in 1864 planning was initiated for a chemical laboratory for the Institute. Construction was started in 1865 and work on the brick structure was completed the following year. The cost of the building was $10,000, half of which was donated by Rensselaer President John Flack Winslow.

On May 20, 1862, 10 days after Rensselaer’s physical plant was completely destroyed in The Great Troy Fire, the Institute’s trustees began planning a new home for Rensselaer.  Under the leadership of

May 10th of this year was the 150th anniversary of Troy’s Great Fire. The fire destroyed a major portion of the city’s downtown including the Institute’s entire physical plant. It was an important event in Rensselaer’s history because it marks the beginning of the move of the Institute from downtown Troy up the hill to its present location.

During the construction of EMPAC, the Institute Archives and Special Collections had an exhibit in the Folsom Library lobby about performance spaces at RPI.  Now with EMPAC well into its third year as a complete and dedicated space for the performing arts at Rensselaer, I had the opportunity to create an online exhibit from materials in the archives, including items used in