Some "Historical" Photos of the CSU campus, circa 1979

These are some pictures my dad took when he attended CSU in 1979. I also have some modern pictures so you can see what has changed in 25 years. You can see bigger versions of the old pictures by clicking on them.

The Engineering Building

In 1979, the Engineering had 5 wings like it does today, but there were no labs in between the wings, and rather than being stucco, the walls were made of painted panels and larger windows. On the front side, the main hallway was only one floor tall, and you could see the edges of the wings over the front of the building.

The back of the Engineering Building, taken from the back of Allison Hall (1979)

The back of the Engineering Building, taken from the back of Allison Hall (present)

The front of the Engineering Building, taken from the (now nonexistant) balcony on the LSC (1979)

The front of the Engineering building, taken from the front of the LSC (present)

The Plaza

In 1979, the Plaza didn't have any planters in it, and the street between the LSC and the Library was a regular street. Also, the Library was much smaller at that point, so the Plaza continued farther back on the other side of the street.

The Plaza, taken from the (now nonexistant) balcony of the LSC (1979)

The Plaza, taken from the front of the LSC (present)

The Library

In 1979, the Library was about half the size that it is now, with only the south and west parts of the current square shape. The white concrete zigzags went across the entire front, continuing over to the Clark (then Social Sciences) building in the east.

The Library, taken from the edge of the street (1979)

The Library, taken from the flagpole (present)

Where the original front of the Library meets the new addition (present)

The USC

In 1979, the USC wasn't owned by CSU at all-- it was a private dorm (where my dad lived) called College Inn. It had full-sized windows, and the 6th floor had rooms that were either larger than those on the lower floors, or had small balconies. Near the end of the 1979 spring semester, one of the rooms on the 5th floor caught on fire. The company that owned the building was almost bankrupt by that point anyway, and the speculation is that the fire forced them into bankruptcy and they sold the building to CSU for cheap.

The College Inn (what the sign on the front said in the original picture, unfortunately it's mostly illegible here), taken from the street (1979)

The USC, taken from the street (present)

The back of College Inn (1979). (a) is the fire, and (b) was some sort of parking area-- what is now the USC 110 classroom, which is why that classroom isn't really connected to the rest of the building.