The First Building of Texas Woman's University

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to do it justice. Now, when you talk about institutions that were built to last, you're talkin' about places that start with a fight just to exist, and this one was no different. The Girls Industrial Institute and College of Texas was created in 1901, and what followed was something like a championship round.

Fourteen cities put their hands up, all of them wanting to be the home of this new school. Fourteen. You can imagine the horse-trading and the hoping.

But when the dust settled, on February 5, 1902, Denton was chosen. And Denton has been wearing that distinction ever since. Less than a year later, on January 10, 1903, they laid the cornerstone of the very first building on campus.

Neoclassical revival architecture: columns and symmetry, the kind of building that says we are here and we intend to stay. By the time classes actually began, on September 23, 1903, one hundred and eighty-six students walked through those doors alongside fourteen faculty members. One building.

One campus. One mission. And for years, that was the only academic structure on the grounds.

Now here's a little wrinkle worth noting. By the time that building was finished, the school's official name had already shifted; it was going by The Girls Industrial College. Schools, apparently, were still figurin' out what to call themselves.

In 1905 it became The College of Industrial Arts. Then Texas State College for Women in 1934. Then Texas Woman's University in 1957.

Four names across the decades, but the institution underneath them never wavered, and today it holds a distinction that belongs to no other university in the United States: it was founded expressly for women. Wings were added to that first building in 1916, and it kept right on working. It served as the administration building all the way until 1956, which means it housed the offices of six presidents.

Cree T. Work, 1903 to 1910. William B.

Bizzell, 1910 to 1914. Francis M. Bralley, 1914 to 1924.

Lindsey Blayney, 1925 to 1926. Louis H. Hubbard, 1926 to 1950.

And John A. Guinn, after 1950. Six presidents.

Half a century of decisions made inside those neoclassical walls. By 1973, the university's enrollment across its Denton, Dallas, and Houston campuses exceeded sixty-five hundred students. And that first building (the one where it all began) now houses the archives and documents of the institution's history.

Which feels just about right. The place that held the first footsteps now holds the memory of all the ones that followed. That cornerstone from January of 1903 is still doing its job.

What the marker says

The Girls Industrial Institute and College of Texas was created in 1901. Fourteen cities offered sites. Denton was chosen February 5, 1902. The cornerstone of this building, the first on the campus, was laid on January 10, 1903. The architecture is neoclassical revival. Classes began on September 23, 1903, with 186 students and 14 faculty members. For years this was the only academic structure. Wings were added 1916. Used as administration building until 1956, this hall housed offices of presidents Cree T. Work, 1903-10; William B. Bizzell, 1910-14; Francis M. Bralley, 1914-24; Lindsey Blayney, 1925-26; Louis H. Hubbard, 1926-50; John A. Guinn, after 1950. By date this building was finished, "The Girls Industrial College" was official title of the school. Later (1905) it was renamed "The College of Industrial Arts"; "Texas State College for Women", 1934; "Texas Woman's University", 1957; and is the only university in the United States founded expressly for women. Enrollment on Denton, Dallas, and Houston campuses exceeded 6500 in 1973. This structure, central to life of the institution, now houses archives and documents of its history. (1974) Incise on back: Sponsored by the Past President's Council of the Texas Woman's University Alumnae Association