{"id":611,"date":"2014-08-29T15:56:13","date_gmt":"2014-08-29T15:56:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/archives.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/?page_id=611"},"modified":"2026-02-27T20:11:58","modified_gmt":"2026-02-27T20:11:58","slug":"1920-1929","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/research-education\/timeline\/1920-1929\/","title":{"rendered":"Student Life at Illinois: 1920-1929"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2><strong>1920-1929<\/strong><\/h2>\n<figure id=\"attachment_691\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-691\" style=\"width: 213px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"http:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/73\/2014\/08\/0004419.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-691 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/73\/2014\/08\/0004419-213x300.jpg\" alt=\"President Edmund James and the chimes prior to their dedication, October 1920\" width=\"213\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/73\/2014\/08\/0004419-213x300.jpg 213w, https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/73\/2014\/08\/0004419.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 213px) 100vw, 213px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-691\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">President Edmund James and the chimes prior to their dedication, October 1920<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3><strong>1920<\/strong><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Women\u2019s Club damaged by fire.<\/li>\n<li>First all-University mixer held.<\/li>\n<li>David Kinley assumed the UI presidency from the retiring Edmund James.<\/li>\n<li>Library (Altgeld Hall) chimes dedicated to the University as gifts from the classes 1914-1921.<\/li>\n<li>Chapters of Phi Epsilon Pi and Alpha Epsilon Phi established.<\/li>\n<li>Alpha Alpha Alpha organized.<\/li>\n<li>First Dad\u2019s Day held.<\/li>\n<li>Smith Memorial Music Hall and Education Building (now University High School) completed.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><strong>1921<\/strong><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>First Mom\u2019s Day held.<\/li>\n<li>Dads Association established.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_693\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-693\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"http:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/73\/2014\/08\/0002027.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-693 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/73\/2014\/08\/0002027-300x175.jpg\" alt=\"University High School Proposal, circa 1919\" width=\"300\" height=\"175\" srcset=\"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/73\/2014\/08\/0002027-300x175.jpg 300w, https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/73\/2014\/08\/0002027.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-693\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">University High School Proposal, circa 1919<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3><strong>1922<\/strong><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Mothers Association established.<\/li>\n<li>First broadcast of campus radio station occurred on April 6, 1922. Dean of Men Thomas Arkle Clark delivered a talk on &#8220;Why College Students Fail.&#8221;<\/li>\n<li>During commencement address, Lorado Taft presented plaster cast of Alma Mater statuary group. Plaster cast was displayed on Auditorium steps.<\/li>\n<li>University High School opened its doors to 63 students.<\/li>\n<li>Cement surface installed on Boardwalk, which ultimately became known as the Broadwalk.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><strong>1923<\/strong><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Sigma Pi Alpha installed.<\/li>\n<li>Maria Leonard named Dean of Women.<\/li>\n<li>Hillel Foundation established on campus.<\/li>\n<li>Horticultural Field Laboratory completed.<\/li>\n<li>Illinois defeated Chicago 7-0 in first football game played at Memorial Stadium.<\/li>\n<li>Football team won national championship title.<\/li>\n<li>First Axe-Grinder&#8217;s Ball held.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure id=\"attachment_695\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-695\" style=\"width: 241px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"http:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/73\/2014\/08\/0001073.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-695 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/73\/2014\/08\/0001073-241x300.jpg\" alt=\"Red Grange, Illinois halfback, after his last game played for the University, circa 1925\" width=\"241\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/73\/2014\/08\/0001073-241x300.jpg 241w, https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/73\/2014\/08\/0001073.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 241px) 100vw, 241px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-695\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Red Grange, Illinois halfback, after his last game played for the University, circa 1925<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3><strong>1924<\/strong><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Freshman women\u2019s honor society Alpha Lambda Delta formed.<\/li>\n<li>A May 3, 1924, <em>Daily Illini<\/em> editorial condemned newly revised Interfraternity Council constitution which provided admittance to Jewish fraternities but not to African-American ones.<\/li>\n<li>Illinois athletes won three gold medals and one silver medal in track and field at the Olympics.<\/li>\n<li>On Memorial Stadium\u2019s dedication day, Red Grange scored four touchdowns in the first twelve minutes in a game against Michigan. Grange would make two more touchdowns and the Illini would go on to win 39-14 in one of the most famous games in college football history.<\/li>\n<li>New Agriculture Building (now Mumford Hall) completed.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><strong>1925<\/strong><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Crossword puzzle craze swept campus.<\/li>\n<li>On March 9th student riot at Orpheum Theater caused $800 in damages.<\/li>\n<li>Registration snafus forced dismissal of classes.<\/li>\n<li>Ex-President James died.<\/li>\n<li>Illibuck tradition with Ohio State began. Initially, a live turtle was given to the winner of the Illinois-Ohio State football game, but after the turtle\u2019s death in 1927, a wooden replica served as the trophy.<\/li>\n<li>Bronze Tablet established to honor seniors of the highest scholastic standing.<\/li>\n<li>Seventeen fraternities boycotted Midway Confectionery on Fourth Street in a bid to force store out of fraternity district.<\/li>\n<li>New Men\u2019s Gymnasium (now Huff Hall), New Commerce Building (now David Kinley Hall), West Residence Hall (Evans Hall), and McKinley Hospital completed.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure id=\"attachment_696\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-696\" style=\"width: 167px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"http:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/73\/2014\/08\/0006617.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-696 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/73\/2014\/08\/0006617-167x300.jpg\" alt=\"Smallpox notice, 1938\" width=\"167\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/73\/2014\/08\/0006617-167x300.jpg 167w, https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/73\/2014\/08\/0006617-571x1024.jpg 571w, https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/73\/2014\/08\/0006617.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 167px) 100vw, 167px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-696\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Smallpox notice, 1938<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3><strong>1926<\/strong><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Smallpox outbreak struck campus, with 30 cases reported.<\/li>\n<li>During annual spring celebration, some 2,000 students marched in downtown Champaign, causing seven injuries and $1405 in damages.<\/li>\n<li>Lester Leutwiler became the first Chief Illiniwek, debuted during football game against University of Pennsylvania.<\/li>\n<li>National Spanish honor society organized.<\/li>\n<li>Number of sororities on campus reached 36, up from 20 in 1920.<\/li>\n<li>No-car rule imposed restricting driving on campus.<\/li>\n<li>First unit of Main Library completed.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_698\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-698\" style=\"width: 218px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"http:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/73\/2014\/08\/0003260.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-698 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/73\/2014\/08\/0003260-218x300.jpg\" alt=\"Football Program, Northwestern, 1927\" width=\"218\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/73\/2014\/08\/0003260-218x300.jpg 218w, https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/73\/2014\/08\/0003260.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 218px) 100vw, 218px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-698\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Football Program, Northwestern, 1927<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3><strong>1927<\/strong><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Roller-skating craze engulfed campus.<\/li>\n<li>Smoking banned on campus.<\/li>\n<li>April 4th hailstorm damaged greenhouses and other buildings to the extent of $22,665.<\/li>\n<li>Five-day Thanksgiving holiday established.<\/li>\n<li>Football team won national championship title.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><strong>1928<\/strong><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Spring semester experienced record enrollment of 9,547.<\/li>\n<li>Phi Omega Pi sorority quarantined for smallpox.<\/li>\n<li>The Marching Illini created the 3-in-1 formation.<\/li>\n<li>Organization of independent men formed.<\/li>\n<li>Newman Foundation opened dining hall to public.<\/li>\n<li>Memorial Stadium received a new scoreboard.<\/li>\n<li>Council of Administration adopted revised rushing rules.<\/li>\n<li>International Council of Foreign Students organized.<\/li>\n<li>Architecture Building completed.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure id=\"attachment_700\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-700\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"http:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/73\/2014\/08\/0006610.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-700 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/73\/2014\/08\/0006610-300x212.jpg\" alt=\"Football Program, Northwestern, 1927\" width=\"300\" height=\"212\" srcset=\"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/73\/2014\/08\/0006610-300x212.jpg 300w, https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/73\/2014\/08\/0006610.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-700\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Alma Mater dedication ceremony, June 11, 1929<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><strong>1929<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Quarantine imposed after outbreak of scarlet fever.<\/li>\n<li>Chapter of Sigma Phi Beta installed.<\/li>\n<li>Early May storm blanketed campus with 1-inch of snow.<\/li>\n<li>Alma Mater statuary group dedicated during ceremony held on commencement day. Sculptor Lorado Taft was present for the occasion.<\/li>\n<li>Martin Kamerer opened a pharmacy on Daniel Street that would ultimately become the campus institution Kam&#8217;s.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><a href=\"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/research-education\/timeline\/1910-1919\/\"><strong>Return to 1910-1919<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/research-education\/timeline\/1930-1939\/\"><strong>Continue to 1930-1939<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>1920-1929 1920 Women\u2019s Club damaged by fire. First all-University mixer held. David Kinley assumed the UI presidency from the retiring Edmund James. Library (Altgeld Hall) chimes dedicated to the University as gifts from the classes 1914-1921. Chapters of Phi Epsilon Pi and Alpha Epsilon Phi established. Alpha Alpha Alpha organized. First Dad\u2019s Day held. Smith [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":453,"featured_media":0,"parent":339,"menu_order":4,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-611","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/611","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/453"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=611"}],"version-history":[{"count":15,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/611\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13185,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/611\/revisions\/13185"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/339"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.library.illinois.edu\/slc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=611"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}