Dear Old State: The gateway to Penn State

The intersection at College Avenue and Allen Street has served as a main entryway to the University Park campus — for pedestrians and traffic alike — since Penn State first opened in 1859

An “S” ornament hangs above the main entrance at Allen Street for commencement ceremonies in 1914. The statues of “Ma” and “Pa” lions can be seen at the top of each pillar. Credit: Penn State University Archives / Penn State. Creative Commons

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The pedestrian intersection of Allen Street and College Avenue in downtown State College has served as the main entrance to the University Park campus for generations, but this now well-known landmark was not always lined with the stone pillars and iron gates that exist today.

When The Farmers’ High School of Pennsylvania opened in 1859, there were no physical barriers separating the campus — which consisted primarily of the main building, the original “Old Main” — from the village across what is now College Avenue.

The village livestock took advantage of this situation, according to the January 1953 issue of Alumni News: “Somewhat more rural than today, State College had cows in its main street. Cows being wont to roam, fences were needed to keep them from destroying the lawns, shrubs and trees on campus. If there were fences, there needed to be gates.”

Wooden fences were erected around the campus property to keep cows and other livestock from the village from coming on to the institution’s grounds. At the main driveway to campus, located at the present-day intersection of College Avenue and Allen Street (then a roadway), a stile and wooden gate were placed to allow pedestrians and carriages to enter.

A rear view of two men approaching a wooden stile — A wooden stile served as a barrier at the main entrance to campus in the late 1800s, to prevent cows and other livestock from the village from coming on to the institution's grounds. The handwritten caption on this photo reads "Approaching the stile at the entrance to campus - Allen Street and College Avenue. Late '80s." Credit: Penn State University Archives / Penn State. Creative Commons

The January 1953 Alumni News article explored why the main entrance to campus was placed on the west side of the main building rather than on the east. According to the article, in 1910 then-President Edwin Sparks asked this question in a letter to Alfred Smith — a member of the institution’s first baccalaureate class in 1861 and the recipient of the institution’s first master’s degree in 1863. Smith had joined the faculty as a professor of chemistry and physics and later served as an alumni representative on the Board of Trustees.

Smith responded, “When the Old Willow tree was planted by Prof. William G. Waring in 1858, it was a lone tree and it was a lone tree when the institution opened its doors in 1859. Professor Waring was desirous of preserving the ground west of the building from trespass by teams [of horse-drawn vehicles]. The willow tree was planted to mark the turning point for teams bringing material for building construction.

“There was no entrance way at that time from the east, as there was no railroad into Bellefonte and as Spruce Creek, 22 miles away on the west, was the nearest railroad point, traffic of all kinds entering the college grounds entered by the old straight roadway [the present-day Allen Street mall], from the public road leading direct to what was then the location of the barn. The Old Willow tree was planted to mark the proper turning point at which all traffic leading to the college buildings should leave the main driveway. The wagon gate and stile was erected in 1859, but after only a few months was removed and placed at the entrance of the driveway from the public road.”

From that time on, the intersection of College Avenue and Allen Street served as the main entrance to campus. Gatehouses were constructed at each of the three entrances to campus, with “someone on hand full time to open the gates,” according to the January 1953 issue of Alumni News.

A drawing of the campus gate in 1885. Credit: Penn State University Archives / Penn State. Creative Commons

In 1887, self-opening trip gates were installed, eliminating the need for the associated gatehouses and gatekeepers.

The stiles were removed completely from the college grounds in 1897, following the passing of a borough ordinance making it “unlawful to let horses, cattle, mules, hogs, sheep or goats run at large within borough limits,” according to the Centre County Historical Society.

A wooden fence at the entrance to campus in the late 1800s — The main entrance to campus sometime after the stile was removed. Credit: Penn State University Archives / Penn State. Creative Commons

In 1905, two stone pillars were installed at the main entrance. The gates came from the Pennsylvania exhibit at the St. Louis World’s Fair of 1904. On top of each pillar sat a statue of a lion holding a shield with the word “PA” displayed on them. The students quickly dubbed the lion statues “Ma” and “Pa," according to Penn State University Libraries, and the felines became two of the most popular landmarks on campus.

The main entrance to campus, sometime between 1905 and 1916. The statues of “Ma” and “Pa” lions can be seen at the top of each pillar. Credit: Penn State University Archives / Penn State. Creative Commons

Campus guardians Ma and Pa stood atop the pillars at the main entrance for a little more than a decade, until the graduates of 1916 voted to tear down the posts and install a memorial gateway at Allen Street as one of their class gifts.

According to the Sept. 21, 1916, issue of the Penn State Collegian, construction on the new memorial gate was slated to be completed by Nov. 1 of that year.

“The old posts which were at the front entrance to the campus were carefully taken down and stored so that if needed in the future may be easily accessible for use,” the article said.

The main entrance to campus in the late 1910s — The new memorial gateway, as pictured in the 1919 issue of LaVie. Credit: Penn State University Archives / Penn State. Creative Commons

Allen Street was closed to through traffic in 1924, and the main entrance to campus has been pedestrian-only ever since. The photo below was taken about 1929, before a permanent barrier was erected. Sackett Building, which began construction in 1929, is pictured at left.

A picture of the main entrance with Sackett Building in the background — This picture was taken c. 1929, before a permanent barrier was erected across the main driveway. Sackett Building, which began construction in 1929, is pictured at left. Credit: Penn State University Archives / Penn State. Creative Commons

The black iron grill, which still exists today, was added in 1930 to form a barrier across the mall, as pictured below in an undated photo.

The Allen Street gates in the winter — The black iron grill, which exists today, was added in 1930 to form a barrier across the mall, as pictured in this undated photo. Credit: Penn State University Archives / Penn State. Creative Commons

Today, several other sets of memorial gates and structures also mark entryways to campus. One gateway, a gift of the class of 1925, marks the pedestrian entrance at the east side of the Mall near the Health and Human Development Building.

Another gateway — a gift from the class of 1903 during their 50th anniversary reunion in 1953 — was installed at the intersection of Atherton Street and Pollock Road. In 2002, these gates were moved to one block to the east to their current location at the corner of Burrowes and Pollock roads to make way for the construction of the present-day Westgate Building.

A gateway element also stands at the intersection of Atherton Street and Curtin Road, welcoming visitors to the west side of campus. This gateway was a gift of the class of 2008.

While not technically a gateway, the 70-foot long Pennsylvania State University landmark sign located on Park Avenue near Beaver Stadium was a gift of the class of 1992 and welcomes visitors at the northeast side of campus.