Old Main

Old Main, now the central administration building, is really the new Old Main. The original structure was begun on this site in 1856 and completed in 1863. It was, for many years, the entire campus of the fledgling college -- where students and faculty lived, worked, and attended classes. It was rebuilt in 1929-1930 as you see it now, using many of the stones which had been quarried nearby for the original structure.

Old Main now houses the offices of Penn State's different locations, part of the Alumni Association, Development, Public Information, and other administrators, including the President of the University.

Be sure not to miss the famous frescoes in the foyer, painted by mural artist Henry Varnum Poor in 1940 and 1949, and funded initially by class gifts. Using earphones just inside the front doors, and at three other locations, you can hear the frescoes described.

The frescoes depict the founding, aspirations, and labor of your Land-Grant University in Pennsylvania, following Abraham Lincoln's signing of the Morrill Land Grant Act of 1862. The Act, and the universities it helped to establish, first brought higher education within reach for the sons and daughters of the working classes.

Penn State continues to fulfill that mission today. There are many fine drawings and paintings in Old Main; it, along with the famous Nittany Lion, symbolizes for many the true heart and spirit of Penn State.

The Old Main tower is not routinely open to visitors. However, it is open on special days such as spring and summer commencement, alumni weekend, and homecoming.