Memorial Gym makeover

The University of Idaho’s Memorial Gym opened in 1928. That spring, the yearbook was dedicated to the grand occasion.

Etchings of the new building adorned the inside covers of the book. Each page bore a similar etching in the corner, framing pictures of faculty, students and clubs.

The yearbook’s introduction mentions the gym, followed by a three-page article.”When students returned to school in September, 1928, their new gymnasium was practically completed and ready for use, its beautiful walls and tower rising majestically above MacLean Field,” the article said.

Eighty-four years later, a construction crew is perched on the roof of the gym. A few weeks ago, they opened the tower for the first time since its construction. Luke Keogh, the project’s manager, said the tower was filled with bird debris.

“It’s been a great home for them for the last 80-some years,” Keogh said.

Underneath the tower, the Memorial Gym is home to plaques commemorating university faculty and students who gave their lives in war.

The original tablets, commemorating the Spanish-American and First World Wars, record about 900 names, according to the yearbook.

“This memorial tablet, together with trophies of war, will be placed in the tower,” the yearbook said.

One of those trophies of war was a German fieldpiece that used to guard the main entrance, the yearbook said.

To the left of the plaques, a series of winding stairs leads to the upper levels. Justin Bowles, one of the men working on the tower, said they carried all of the building materials up the flights of stairs and when the project is finished, they will take them back down.

At the top, plywood sheets form an even floor for the men to walk on. A series of two-by-fours creates a protective railing.

To get to the roof, workers climb through a window behind the upper rows of stands above the main gym floor.

Two ladders – one permanent and one temporary – allow workers to get to the tower level. Tools and other materials are raised and lowered by rope from the first roof level. Hardhats are required.

In 1923, a committee was formed to decide on and raise money for a permanent war memorial on campus.

Over the next four years, fundraising efforts raised a little more than $100,000 for the project. Construction began in the fall of 1927.

Despite a severe Moscow winter, the building’s shape was completed by June 1928 and work on the interior was completed in subsequent months.

The yearbook declared the floor of the gym to be “one of the finest on the Pacific coast.”

On Nov. 3, 1928, the completed building was presented to the university.

The yearbook reported that a “Mr. D.R. Leeper” gave the main address. He said they decided on a gym because it would be useful.

He said it was “a proper inspiration to the youth of the state, and a fitting honor to the university students and faculty members who served in the Spanish-American and World Wars.”

In the course of its history, the Memorial Gym would host numerous basketball and volleyball games, boxing matches – Idaho was once a national competitor – and graduations.

With an influx of students after World War II, the gym would serve as a temporary dormitory for 300 men.

The building was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1977.

Now, the building houses several offices, including the Army ROTC and Women’s Center offices.

The UI men’s and women’s basketball teams usually start their seasons in the gym, and other sports are still played there.

In 2010, parts of Memorial Gym were remodeled and several of the football player gargoyles on the exterior of the building were replaced.

The City of Moscow awarded the university an Orchid Award for Historic Preservation for that project.

Keogh said this summer they are putting structural steel framing inside the tower to reinforce its supports, as well as replacing louvers and some parapet caps.

Keogh said the crowning jewel of the project is to replace the stone cap on top of the tower.”It’s a neat project to be working on,” Keogh said.

Golis Construction, the company Keogh works for, bid $199,000 for the project. Keogh said they hope to have it finished by fall.

Kasen Christensen can be reached at [email protected]