The Campus Which Could Have Been
Perhaps one of the University of Alberta’s most iconic features are its century old buildings, drawing in students for graduation photo-ops and scenic backdrops for LinkedIn profile pictures. Indeed, the dreamy collegiate charm of many of these developments is a unique selling point for the university, used in many advertising campaigns and highlighted on campus tours. Yet, many are not aware that the original plan for the university included a lot more of these buildings than those that exist today.
While sources provide a variety of notable Canadian architects who seemingly helped to envision the campus master plan, the most repeatedly referenced are the Montréal architects Nobbs and Hyde. This original plan, drafted in 1912, imagined an assortment of buildings in a geometrically orderly composition, as was the classic academic tradition for the time. Based on the concepts of Beaux-Arts architectural style, the expansive campus was meant to have a uniform design, with large halls divided by green courtyards. The original drawings also display some elements which we see on campus today, such as tree lined pathways and a central quadrangle, which current students would recognize as the ‘Main Quad’.
Unfortunately, like many great urban-planning projects, this plan was never truly implemented. A combination of the First World War and the subsequent Great Depression put construction on hold for many years. Following the Second World War, a rapid surge in enrollment forced the university to adapt, leading to swift development. The introduction of new technologies, such as the automobile (which somehow usually ends up being the antagonist in most urban planning stories), also swayed the university to the more varied design which exists now. Soon, the original project was nothing more than a distant memory.
Yet, from Rutherford House, to the respective Assiniboia, Athabasca, and Pembina Hall’s, the university still hosts many buildings with rich histories. Today, Pembina Hall plays an especially important role, being the location of the Faculty of Native Studies, where one can learn more about the land and those who lived on it before the university was established. So, while we may have to dream of the campus that could have been, my fellow Beaux-Arts enjoyers can still find comfort in the unique buildings and history of the campus we study on.
Written by Cole Swanson; image courtesy of University of Alberta Archives, via Skyrise Edmonton.