DUANE
Duane's take
Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about The University of Texas at El Paso — and friend, this is one story worth pullin' over for. Now, most universities come into this world quietly — a building here, a charter there. But this one?
This one started with fire, mountains, and a kingdom on the other side of the world that nobody in West Texas had ever set foot in. It begins on April 16, 1913, when the Texas Legislature approved the creation of a State School of Mines and Metallurgy. The board of regents of the University of Texas formally established the school one year later.
The citizens of El Paso, bless them, donated land east of Fort Bliss, and the site came with buildings — the former El Paso Military Institute already standing there, ready to be put to new purpose. Now, that might've been the whole story. Except October 1916 had other plans.
A fire came through, and the college moved — moved to this very location, the spot where it stands today. And here is where the tale takes its unforgettable turn. By the end of 1918, five buildings had been completed in an architectural style imitating the Himalayan country of Bhutan.
Bhutan. On the western edge of Texas. You cannot make that up, and I wouldn't dare try.
The institution kept growin' like something that knew it had a long way to go. Designated a branch of the University of Texas in 1919, the College of Mines and Metallurgy added liberal arts courses and by 1931 was offering a bachelor of arts degree. A master of arts degree program followed in 1940.
A doctoral degree program arrived in 1974. The name changed to Texas Western College in 1949, and then again — to the University of Texas at El Paso — in 1967. What stands there now is something you won't find anywhere else in this state: a campus with a mountain setting and that one-of-a-kind architecture, still echoing a Himalayan kingdom, rising up out of the West Texas desert.
Some places just decide, early on, that ordinary was never going to be an option.
What the marker says
The University of Texas at El Paso traces its history to April 16, 1913, when the Texas Legislature approved the creation of a State School of Mines and Metallurgy. The board of regents of the University of Texas formally established the school one year later. The citizens of El Paso donated land east of Fort Bliss for the school. The site included buildings of the former El Paso Military Institute. Following a fire in October 1916, the college was moved to this location. By the end of 1918 five buildings had been completed in an architectural style imitating that of the Himalayan country of Bhutan. Designated a branch of the University of Texas in 1919, the College of Mines and Metallurgy added liberal arts courses and by 1931 offered a bachelor of arts degree. Further expansions led to a master of arts degree program in 1940 and a doctoral degree program in 1974. The name was changed to Texas Western College in 1949, and to the University of Texas at El Paso in 1967. The institution's campus, with its mountain setting and distinctive architecture, is unique among the state's colleges. (1989)