Built in 1927 as the OSU Poultry Science Building, Dryden Hall provided the only classroom space for the fledgling College of Veterinary Medicine prior to the building of Magruder Hall. It currently houses the Department of Biomedical Sciences, but until recently, the building hadn’t changed much in 85 years.
This summer a massive remodeling of the interior of Dryden is taking place. On the first floor, the old classroom and two poultry labs that held incubators and a chicken-plucking machine are being replaced with a state-of-the-art bio-safety laboratory. Next door, the old concrete freezer and utility spaces will be replaced with a classroom. This is just one phase of a whole-building remodel that has also added new graduate student work areas and faculty offices on the second floor.
The building originally did not include a lady’s restroom so in the 1950s, a mensroom on the second floor was coverted for women to use. Beth Chamblin, Assistant to the Department Head in Biomedical Sciences, is especially pleased that a women’s restroom will now be added to the first floor. “We’re all looking forward to it,” she says.
Dean Cyril Clarke has been setting aside carryover funds from the general budget for several years to help finance the Dryden upgrade. Oregon State University is funding the accessibility upgrades and new equipment will be paid for with funds from generous donors.
Class of 1983 in the first-floor Dryden Classroom.
The same classroom today – demolished to make way for a new state-of-the-art laboratory.
I took Poultry Science in that room in the 70’s. I absolutely loved that class.
Dear Friends,
As the center person in the front row above, I believe there is a problem with this juxtaposition. The classroom we were in was on the second floor of Dryden, unless my memory is way worse than I think it is (entirely possible). That second floor room is still a classroom used by vet med, at least as of 1/13, although slightly modified since 1979/80. Note antique carousel projector in back corner.