Chemistry Building #1 after fire, 1887
OSU’s chemistry department got off to a rocky start: Originally housed on the third floor of University Hall, it was soon moved to a newly constructed building on the site of, most recently, Brown Hall. When a fire started in the department’s new building in 1887, the whole structure burned down because of a lack of water to extinguish the flames.
The next chemistry building was built two years later on the site of the present Derby Hall. It burned down in 1904. A recounting of the incident said there were “ludicrous happenings due to excitement” that occurred that night.
Chemistry Building #2, 1904
Apparently, the firefighters were afraid of the chemicals housed in the building, so they did not try to put out the flames (whether or not the chemicals were a threat is not known). However, that did not stop students from entering the burning building and attempting to save the contents, including bottles of distilled water.
The third chemistry building, now known as Derby Hall, was rebuilt in 1906 on the site of its predecessor. It, too, caught fire soon after it was completed; however, the building was saved. Its first addition was, of course, a fire-proof storage shed for the chemicals. No doubt this helped to break the curse.
Filed by C.N.
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