The ’87 Gymnasium was dedicated in June 1912. Planning for the new facility went back a couple of years earlier to 1910 when a Board of Trustees committee was established to investigate the feasibility of developing a department of physical culture at the Institute. The committee concluded that a completely equipped modern gymnasium was necessary if such a department was to be established.

In 1907, Mrs. Russell Sage gave Rensselaer $1,000,000 as a memorial to her husband, Russell Sage, a New York financier, who, for ten years prior to his death, was a trustee of the Institute. Of this amount, $300,000 was contributed toward erecting and equipping a laboratory for the use of newly established courses in mechanical and electrical engineering.

                    Student Club House In 1906 a committee of Rensselaer graduates met in New York City for the purpose of organizing a Rensselaer Student’s Association.

Campus Dormitory: The Warren House, acquired with the 1905 purchase of the Warren estate property, was converted into a student dormitory in 1907 and remained the only campus housing until 1916.

The first two buildings erected on the Warren estate property, purchased by the Institute after the 1904 fire which destroyed the Main Building, were the

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 two Continuing Up the Hill posts we described the Warren estate property purchased by the Institute after the 1904 fire that destroyed the Main Building. The first building to be erected on the newly acquired property was the Carnegie Building.

The students formed the R.P.I. Union in the fall of 1890 stemming from a desire to be taken more seriously for their athletic endeavors, to be more competitive with rival colleges, and to create social ties with Troy citizens (The Poly Dec. 20, 1890). At this time, the first President of the Union, W.C.H.

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.

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.