1977

Ever wondered why two of OSU’s tallest buildings have the names they do?

Let’s talk about Morrill Tower first: Congressman Justin Morrill of Vermont first proposed in 1859 for funded endowments for public colleges and universities through the sale of federal lands. These “land-grant” colleges would educate students in engineering and agriculture, while ensuring low tuition rates, because of the federal support.

Congress eventually passed the bill, after much debate, but it was vetoed by President James Buchanan. With the start of the Civil War, though, there was another opportunity for passage, since much of the opposition towards the bill was from the Southern Democrats, who by then had left Congress.

There was also a new President in office – this is where Lincoln Tower comes in – who supported the bill. President Abraham Lincoln signed the act into law on July 2, 1862. Eight years later, in 1870, the Ohio Agricultural and Mechanical College was founded as a land-grant institution.

The Lincoln and Morrill Towers were named in 1965, as construction began, to honor the author and the signer of the Morrill Act, which allowed for the establishment of Ohio State.

(Most of this post comes from “The Ohio State University: An Illustrated History,” by retired University Archivist Raimund Goerler.)