December 8, 2024
Renovation work at Mayville State University’s flagship building, Old Main, continues. Design work began in January of 2024 and the bidding process is underway. As this is happening, abatement is in full swing. The full renovation project is slated for completion in July of 2026.
The 68th North Dakota Legislative Assembly provided Mayville State University with more than $52 million in state funding for the renovation of Old Main. The renovations include new, state-of-the-art classrooms and collaborative spaces for students and staff, and modernization projects that will make the building more accessible and efficient.
In the abatement process, where hazardous materials are being removed, some interesting discoveries representing the history of the landmark building have been revealed.
The original pillars that once graced the school’s original library were discovered on the second floor, where they had been hidden when walls were built around them. On the third floor, evidence of a 1925 fire was revealed when ceilings and walls were removed and charred rafters were exposed.
An account of the fire is included in the late Mayville State Professor Emeritus Dr. James Warren Neilson’s book, The School of Personal Service: A History of Mayville State College.
“In the fall of 1925, a bad fire in Old Main threatened disaster, but Swain (President Carl Swain) announced almost immediately that classes would be held as usual - some place. Large insurance policies proved to have been a wise precaution, and the administration collected nearly $30,000. That amount of money could do much toward reconstructing the interior of the building, and within a few weeks the Exponent (school newspaper), looking on the bright side of things, all but declared the fire to have been a blessing. ‘The fire that we had last fall … caused a great deal of work and inconvenience,’ a student newsman wrote in January of 1926, but he continued that it ‘did make possible the refinishing of our building and certain very desirable changes.’ A number of the small dormitory rooms on third floor were reconstructed into four large classrooms to be used by the business, rural education, and music departments. Modern, up-to-date lighting fixtures were installed throughout the old building. And, in the true vein of the unselfconscious booster, the writer noted ‘the rest room for the faculty will be one of the finest in the building.’”
A normal school (a teacher-training institution that focused on teaching norms or rules to students) to be located in Mayville was established in the North Dakota constitution in 1889. While Main Building was the first building to appear on the Mayville Normal School campus, the school’s first classes were held in Mayville’s city hall, which was actually a firehouse with rooms on the second floor. With 17 students enrolled, classes began meeting there in December of 1890.
For the normal school’s first full year of operation, which began in the fall of 1891, classroom space was rented in the local school building for a sum of $50 per month. Eighty-five students enrolled. The normal school was able to rent a furnished home in town to serve as dormitory space.
Growing enrollment prompted the need for the newly established normal school to have its own building. In March of 1892, T.D. Allen was hired to design a building. Construction bids were received, but they were all rejected because of the excessive cost. The architect’s plans were simplified and later the bid from John A. Weedal of Willmar, Minn. was accepted. Mr. Weedal agreed to construct the building for $17,650. The building that was constructed is the east half of the present-day Old Main.
Early in October of 1895, operations of Mayville Normal School moved into the new building. The beautiful brick structure had steam heating, an office, a library, and classrooms, all under one roof, and a few of the upper story rooms were used for dormitory purposes.
Enrollment continued to grow, and by 1899, the need for a larger building became obvious. The approximately 240 students enrolled for classes in the 1901-1902 academic year experienced a building that was filled to capacity.
The 1903 legislature provided for the sale of $60,000 in bonds secured by school lands, and W.C. Albrant was hired to make plans for a new wing to be added to Old Main. In April of 1903, Steward Wilson won the bid to build the west end of what is now Old Main at a cost of $52,700. Unfortunately, funding fell through and plans had to be put on hold.
When the Ninth North Dakota Legislature convened in March of 1905, $45,000 was appropriated for the purpose of adding to Main Building. Since the amount was only three-fourths of the amount Mayville leaders had hoped for, Albrant’s plans for a grandiose building with turrets at each end and a great domed tower at its center were pared down. The turrets were eliminated and the central tower, which the architect had hoped would enclose the stairways of the building, was replaced with a flat roof.
Plans called for two gymnasiums in the basement, one for males, and another for females. There would be showers and tub bathing facilities near the gyms. The first floor would contain six “recitation rooms,” or classrooms, while the second floor would feature a great “Assembly Hall” (more recently known as “Old Main Theatre”). An enlarged library and reading room would also be located on the second floor, as would an art room. The third floor would be devoted to more dormitory rooms and a parlor for women.
The construction bid was awarded to Johnson and Powers of Fargo for a sum of $40,990.
News of plans for the building spread quickly and the Minot Optic reported that “when this building is completed, it will be one of the finest between St. Paul and Spokane.”
Work progressed throughout the summer of 1905, and though construction was not complete, the building was suitable for occupancy in January of 1905.
“One can imagine the excitement that accompanied the growth of Mayville Normal School,” said Mayville State Director of Alumni Affairs Beth Swenson. “To consider the most recent version of Old Main while learning of the history of the building provides an interesting perspective on how things have evolved over the years. We are incredibly excited to see and enjoy the next version of our beloved Old Main, a version that will accommodate the students of the 21st century.”
(Historical information obtained from The School of Personal Service: A History of Mayville State College.)
Photo captions
Top right: The first class of Mayville Normal School students met in the fire hall building in Mayville in 1890.
Middle right: Architect T.D. Allen’s 1892 vision for Main Building at the State Normal School at Mayville, N.D. (shown here) was impressed on a decorative plate that was made in Germany for Grinager & Springen, a mercantile store in Mayville. When construction bids came in higher than available funding in 1892, Allen’s plans needed to be simplified to reduce costs. The resulting building is what is now the east end of Old Main.
Bottom right: The east half of the current Old Main was the first building constructed on the campus of Mayville Normal School. The building was completed and ready for occupancy in 1895.
