Oregon State University is the state's
land grant college. Along with its rival 30 miles to the south in Eugene, it is one of the two premier and most established public institutions of higher education in the state. While Corvallis has other major employers, the university is the mainstay of this "college town." This 3.2 mile walk, on flat terrain, will not only go through the university, but also visit some nearby Greek houses and the College Hill West historic district.
This walk starts at the corner of 23rd and Monroe, on the northern edge of the Oregon State University campus. Proceed north on 23rd, away from the campus, into a neighborhood largely populated with students. Along with a few older homes and apartments on 23rd you will see a couple of new student apartments, such as this one on the corner of 23rd and Jackson.
At Harrison Avenue turn left and proceed two blocks to 26th Street, where you will turn left again. 26th has several Oregon State University fraternities and sororities, located in stately houses. The Alpha Gamma Delta sorority is located to the right, with its own
Facebook page and even a
28 minute Youtube video of two co-eds giving a tour of the building.
Across the street from Alpha Gamma Delta is the Theta Chi fraternity house. While frat houses generally look more disheveled than sororities, perhaps because they are worse for wear, Alpha Gamma Delta's stately tudor-style home looks well-maintained, at least from the outside.
Also on the left, two fraternities down from Theta Chi, is Alpha Tau Omega's Georgian style brick home.
Continue on 26th to Van Buren Avenue. At the corner is the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity house, which is built in an Antebellum style with big front porch pillars.
Turn right on Van Buren, and then follow the road as it veers to the left and intersects with Arnold Way. Cross Arnold and continue ahead on 27th Street. You are now in the
College Hill West Historic District, which was built primarily between 1910 and 1940. After a short block on 27th turn right onto Jackson Avenue and then right again on 28th Street. On the left, halfway down the street, is the Charles Schuster House, built in 1913, on the National Register of Historic Places as an individual home. The entire College Hill West area is also listed separately on the National Register.
After one block on 28th you will reach Van Buren Avenue again, where you will turn left. On the first block of 28th is the
Acacia Fraternity house, built in a colonial style. While the name does not apparently consist of Greek letters, the chapter's website asserts that the fraternity's original name was AKAKIA, or six different Greek letters. The house is a large Colonial-style edifice.
Continue on Van Buren to 30th Street and then turn right. At the corner of Van Buren and 30th is the
John Bexell House, built in 1926, and an individual entry on the National Register of Historic Places. The style of this home is a mixture of Tudor Revival and Norman Farmhouse, both popular in the 1920's.
Continue north on 30th Street to Harrison Boulevard. On the corner of 30th and Harrison is the Pi Beta Phi Sorority House, built in 1928 in the French Provincial style. The original sorority vacated the building in 1964 and it was occupied by a fraternity until 1981. According to Zillow it now is split into four apartments. The building is also an individual listing on the National Register of Historic Places.
Turn left onto Harrison and proceed to 32nd Street. On the right is the Harding Center, consisting of administrative offices and an alternative high school for the Corvallis School District. The building was constructed in 1923 as the College Hill Elementary School
At 32nd Street turn left. The J
. Leo Fairbanks house is located on the first block to the right. The home was constructed in 1926 in an English Cottage style, and is also an individual site on the National Register of Historic Places. Fairbanks House
Continue on 32nd to Johnson Avenue, then turn left and walk to 30th Street, where you will turn right. Straight ahead is the 30th Street entrance to the Oregon State University campus. The street widens to include a large landscape median with mature deciduous trees.
Stay on the left side of 30th Street and after passing Withycombe Hall, home to the Veterinary Sciences department, turn left on Campus Way. On your right is the new home of the
Linus Pauling Institute, constructed in 2011.
Linus Pauling is one of the most famous scientists of the 20th Century, and in addition was a noted Peace Activist. He won both the Nobel Prize in Chemistry and the Nobel Peace Prize. While his academic career occurred at Caltech and elsewhere, he was a native of Oregon and a graduate of Oregon State University.
Continuing along Campus Way, you will pass underneath a portion of the Agricultural and Life Sciences building,
On your left, before passing underneath the Agricultural and Life Science Building, are historic greenhouses, originally constructed in the 1920's. This is the first of many buildings on this walk that are contributing structures to the
Oregon State University National Historic District, established in 2008.
After the Agricultural and Life Sciences Building, Hovland Hall is located on the right. It was constructed in 1924 as the Horticultural Sciences Building and was designed by noted Oregon architect
John Virginius Bennes. It was renamed Hovland Hall in honor of longtime Oregon State philosophy and religion professor Warren Hovland. The Department of Horticultural Sciences has moved to the building next door, and Hovland Hall is now occupied by a number of liberal arts programs.
After Hovland Hall turn right onto 26th Street. The first building on your right is the magnificent Italian Renaissance-style Women's Building, now home to the College of Public Health and Human Sciences. It was constructed in 1926. If you have time (and it is open) peak inside at the some the beautiful interior spaces as well.
To the left is the stately
Memorial Union, the traditional student union building on campus, constructed in 1929. It sits on the memorial union quad, whish has lots of use on sunny school days.
Continue straight on 26th past the Memorial Union. Next, on your right is
Weatherford Hall. Constructed in 1928 as the men's dormitory, it was thoroughly renovated and reopened in 2004.
Continue south on 26th past Weatherford Hall and then, on your right, a large sports field. At Washington Way turn left. Looking further down 26th Street the two major sports venues for Oregon state are visible. The closer building on the left is
Gill Coliseum, the main basketball arena. Opened in 1949, it seats 9,600 and has an old-fashioned hoops feel. Beyond is Reser Stadium, home of the football team. Originally opened in 1953, it was significantly expanded in 2005 and now seats over 45,000 fans.
Continue east on Washington Way. The roadway is paralleled on the right by railroad tracks that belong to the insignificant line between Corvallis and Yaquina Bay on the Oregon Coast to the west. However this little branch line has a
colorful history.
Continuing on Washington Way, you will soon see, on the left, the Oregon State Beavers baseball stadium. As you can see by the billboard, the school is quite proud of its back-to-back men's baseball championships in 2006 and 2007.
After passing the baseball stadium turn left onto Benton Place. On the right is the McAlexander Fieldhouse. Originally named the Armory, it was constructed in 1910 and renamed for a General McAlexander, a hero of the Spanish-American War and World War I and an Oregon resident and Oregon State benefactor after his retirement from the military. The most notable tenant in the building is the
Oregon State University Rifle Club, which has an indoor target range in the building. The school's large ROTC program also has its home in this building
At Jefferson Way turn right. To your left is
Furman Hall, housing the College of Education, built in 1902.
Continue along Jefferson. To your right are more modern campus buildings and then an off-campus apartment. To your left is the East Campus quad. At 11th Street turn left and continue along the edge of the quad to the
Jensen Gate, which is the official east entrance to what is known as the Lower Campus. Turn left to go through the gate and down the middle of the East Campus quad.
Head back to 11th Street and cross it. Straight ahead is
Benton Hall, home to the university's Music Department. Benton Hall is the oldest building on campus, dating back to 1887. It was originally known as the College Building, since the entire school was contained within its walls, and later was known as the Administration Building.
Go straight ahead and pass by Benton Hall on your right. Beyond is the Library Quad, which you will pass through on its north side. The massive Valley Library anchors the south end of the quad, with historic
Strand Agricultural Hall (shown in the picture) to the west. Finished in 1913, the building reopened in 2015 after an extensive seismic retrofit.
Continue straight ahead across the Library Quad and once on the other side continue straight between Strand Hall and Gilkey Hall to the right. Once you get to the edge of the Memorial Union Quad, turn right (away from the quad). On your left is the Kelley Engineering Center in a modern building. Oregon State University is Oregon's premier school for engineering studies. Continue north back to Monroe Avenue, and your starting point.
