Overview
In the context of the multiple property listing, “OSU Buildings in Corvallis, OR, 1888-1957,” Gill Coliseum is eligible for listing in the National Register under Criterion “A” for Entertainment/Recreation as part of that collection of buildings that defined Oregon State University. Gill Coliseum opened as the largest building in the State in 1950 with no internal structural supports to hinder spectator views.
History of the Building
Oregon State University constructed Gill Coliseum in 1949 to fulfill the needs of the growing institution by providing space for athletic events and campus gatherings. Educational institutions nationwide began building large-scale athletic venues in the early twentieth century. Collegiate athletics gained popularity among participants and spectators, leading colleges to construct arenas to accommodate the growing crowds.1 While this movement first occurred on the East Coast, led by Ivy League schools Harvard and Yale, universities in the West were early participants, as well. The first indoor, collegiate arenas on the West Coast built to accommodate 10,000 people or more include: University of Oregon’s McArthur Court, 1926; University of Washington’s Hec Edmundson Pavilion, 1927; and UC Berkeley’s Haas Pavilion, 1933. Construction of Gill Coliseum began in 1947, a time when university enrollment was growing quickly at OSU, and throughout the country, to accommodate returning World War II veterans. The popularity of athletics was growing, as well, and memorial stadiums were being constructed quickly. Commenting on the new stadiums, a 1948 Corvallis sports editor pointed out that “most of them you’ll find are going up in basketball hot beds of the country.” He reported that Princeton, Syracuse, and Florida were building new gymnasiums, Springfield
College and Kentucky were building new field houses, and football stadium editions were going up at Michigan State, Texas, Tennessee, Tulane, and Chattanooga. At Oregon State, the popularity of athletics on campus was growing, as was the need for spaces large enough to
serve the gathered student body. The need for recreational facilities expansion was nothing new to the university that started with a single building in 1888. OSU’s first athletics building was the Armory, now known as Gladys Valley Gymnastics Center, built in 1898. It provided space for an armory and gymnasium, and was a social gathering point. OSU’s construction of other athletic facilities followed with the erection of McAlexander Fieldhouse in 1910, the Men’s Gymnasium in 1914, and the Women’s Building in 1927. In 1947, the university’s athletic structures were out-of-date and there were no longer buildings large enough for the student body to congregate. Men’s basketball games and the university’s commencement ceremonies were held in the Men’s Gymnasium, with a seating capacity of 2,500. However, the construction of Gill Coliseum created an arena that accommodated 10,000 people. The University and local residents were excited for the new arena, and contractors worked overtime to complete it by the winter of 1948 to begin hosting men’s basketball games. A 1951 magazine wrote of the locals’ excitement about the new arena. “Corvallis, you see, is a college town…its leather-lunged citizens sardine themselves into a splendid new athletic pavilion, there to cheer-on the fortunes of the Oregon State College basketball team… [S]uch was their enthusiasm that they almost blew the roof off the old basketball gymnasium.” The arena now seats 10,400 people. Men’s basketball and wrestling competitions are held in the arena. Women’s sports have benefited from construction and the continued growth of OSU athletics, as well, with gymnastics and volleyball contests held in Gill. The building also accommodates athletic offices, serving all OSU sports ranging from golf to softball. The services of Gill Coliseum will continue to expand with the erection of Gill Annex slated to open in 2008.
Gill Coliseum is named after Amory “Slats” Gill, head men’s basketball coach for 21 years and a university alumnus. During construction local Beavers fans informally referred to the arena as “Gill Pavilion” and “Gill Coliseum,” and the name stuck. The court was named Ralph Miller Court in 1989 to honor the Hall of Fame coach who headed the Beavers basketball program from 1971-1989. |