| Oregon Agricultural College experienced an enrollment boost following the First World War. Rapidly increasing enrollment in the School of Pharmacy prompted Oregon druggists in the 1920s to petition the board of regents for new quarters to house the department, which had outgrown its home on the fourth floor of Science (Education) Hall. Campus literature described the new building as one of the most modern pharmacy buildings in the United States.
A model of a contemporary drug store was one unique feature of the building. According to early promotional material, such facilities were new features in pharmaceutical curriculum in the 1920s. The drug store model provided instruction in store arrangement, salesmanship, inventory tasks, and other activities associated with running a drug store. The building also contained all rooms and laboratories required for full instruction in all departments of the School of Pharmacy, including a crude room for the investigation of plants indigenous to Oregon.
Druggists, drug manufacturers, and others in the local pharmaceutical industry benefited from the new facility, as the school developed its relationship with them in a variety of ways. One laboratory served the function of researching prescription problems sent in by druggists. The building was spacious enough for pharmaceutical firms to set up exhibits to advertise their products during an annual drug show, a part of the College Educational Exposition at which prospective students learn about the college.
The building still houses the College of Pharmacy, a program which has been active at OSU for over 100 years. |
