1898
Wanted: New look for UC
1898-99: An international design competition is held for a new look for the growing, but architecturally undistinguished, University of California. The UC regents request a [...]
1903
John Galen Howard steps in
Circa 1903: Newly hired University Supervising Architect John Galen Howard begins designing a bell tower as part of new architectural plan for the university. The [...]
1911
The woman behind the Campanile
Early 1911: Jane Sather provides funding for the tower and bells and formally requests that work proceed on the Jane K. Sather Campanile. She provides [...]
1913
Athens of the West
Summer 1913: Construction on the tower begins. With Doe Library, the Hearst Memorial Mining Building and several other structures finished, Howard is beginning to largely [...]
1913
Unlikely inhabitants
1913: While still under construction, the Campanile becomes storage space for a massive amount of fossils collected by UC-led excavations at the Rancho La Brea [...]
1914
Sky-high feast
Jan. 31, 1914: The steel frame’s completion is celebrated with a sky-high feast on the future observation deck, some 200 feet in the air. According [...]
Project team:
Steve Finacom, Gretchen Kell – research/writing
Melani King, Laurie Frasier – design/web production