| Agricultural Hall, as it was originally called, was built four stories tall with
a basement level, which was designed for the Horticulture department. The ground-level
exterior of the building was built to allow one to drive a team of horses in, unload
horticultural supplies into the basement, and drive out the other side. The building also
housed the Chemistry and Agricultural departments, and included a livestock room where
live farm animals were brought in to be studied.
In
1903, an addition was built on the north side, the Farm Mechanics and Soil Physics
building. Agricultural Engineering moved out of Agricultural Hall and into its new
building in 1922. The Botany department moved in during 1928 and the building was renamed
Botany Hall. During 1967-1968, the Botany department moved out and the Psychology
department took its place. The building was placed on the National Register of Historic
Places in 1985. Demolition of Old Botany was considered several times, but the decision to
begin a $5 million renovation and rename the building to Carrie Chapman Catt Hall was made
in 1992. Catt was an Iowa State graduate (1880) who went on to be a major leader in the
women's suffrage movement. |
