Since the original construction of the Michigan Union in 1916, the building has changed little on the outside. But during its 82-year history, the social attitudes and activities of the students whose shadows fall upon its front steps have changed immensely.
By Susan T. Port and Jennifer Yachnin
Daily Staff Reporters
Although it began as an all-male club, the Michigan Union has progressed into a home for all students.
"It has always struck me as ironic that the Union, started as a member-organization for white men, has evolved into the center for many student groups," said Secretary and Vice President for University Relations Walter Harrison.
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| BENTLEY HISTORICAL LIBRARY The 1955 Michigan Union Board president stands with first Union Board president and Union founder Edward Parker at the 1955 dedication of the $2,900,000 addition to the Union. |
Building blocks
A University student, Edward Parker, came up with the idea to build a student union in the fall of 1903 to unite the male students on campus that were divided into church and fraternity organizations.
In June of the same year, the Michigan Union was officially established as a club for male students, alumni, faculty and regents.
After years of fundraising, the home of University faculty member Thomas Cooley, located on South State Street, was purchased in 1907 to serve as a temporary clubhouse.
Eventually, the organization obtained two properties bordering the Cooley house and broke ground for the current Union building in 1916.
Due to inadequate funds, only the brick shell structure of the building was completed before construction was halted during World War I. During the war, the building was used to house soldiers of the Student Army Training Corps who were sent to Ann Arbor for training.
The Union officially opened for use to members in the fall of 1919 - members being any male student who voluntarily paid $2.50 in membership dues each year.
History Prof. Sidney Fine, who attended the University in the '40s, said he remembers the Union as a popular place for student activity and social interaction. Fine said that in the pre-television era the male students would crowd the billiards room to find out the scores of football, baseball and basketball games.
"The Union was sort of a man's club - a lot of students around all of the time," Fine said.
Since the '30s, the building has undergone multiple expansions, including the addition of nearly 5,000 square feet of office space, the University Club - a dining room of 90,000 square feet - the International Center and 80 additional guest rooms.
A flow of students after World War II strained the physical capacities of the Union, leading to a $2,900,000 expansion that brought a cafeteria and several dining and music rooms.
Opening its doors to skirts
Before 1956, the rules of the Union forbade women from entering through the building's front doors, the pool, the billiard's room, the bowling alley or the tap room. Women were restricted to the north entrance, which provided access to lobbies, dining rooms and the second-floor ballroom.
Before the men-only rules were lifted, former University President Harlan Hatcher's wife, Anne, began using the front doors in 1951. She was probably the first woman to do so.
"I started going through there before other women did," Anne Hatcher said. "When we first came to Ann Arbor we had to stay in the Union apartments. We stayed there for several weeks and I, not knowing anything about the front door, would go back and forth between the Union and the house we were redecorating."
Opposition to Union rules barring women from entering the building grew stronger in the '50s.
Audrey Schwimmer, director of the Michigan Union Board, said an elderly gentleman would guard the Union's front door to ensure the rules were strictly abided by until 1956.
Many women were resentful of the restrictions, said Fine, who remembers tasteless jokes made about the situation while he was a student.
"It goes back to a different time," Fine said, adding that the guard was "very rigorous that women could not go in. Women were barred - the Union was pretty much a male preserve."
Schwimmer said because the Union was exclusively for male members, the Michigan League was built to accommodate women in 1929.
Although the League was constructed as a counterpart to the Union, it was not strictly for women's use. Not only were men allowed to enter through the front door of the League, they were also accorded total use of all facilities.
"Men used the League a lot," Fine said. "It was quite popular."
Alumni Association board member Tressa Norton, a '58 alumnae, said women's activities centered more around residence halls or Greek life because women were restricted to living on campus.
"I thought it was kind of discriminatory ... but there were certain things women could not do or places you could not go." Norton said. "Maybe you didn't like it, but you accepted it.
"Most of the activities at the League at that time centered around (the basement)," she said. "I used to cut class on Friday and play bridge for 12 hours."
All areas of the Union were opened to women by 1960.
The progress made in the Union echoed the social change that occurred during this time period across the nation.
The Union "stands as a dual symbol," Harrison said. "On one hand, it is a symbol of progress that we have been able to change societal norms over the years."
But the Union also serves as a reminder of the oppression of women and minority students faced, Harrison said.
A burger and fries, please
For most students, the '90s Union is defined as a quick trip to the ATM or a chance to grab a hamburger at Wendy's in the Michigan Underground.
Engineering Prof. Martin Sichel, who represents the faculty on the Michigan Union Board of Representatives, said the Union's facilities have taken on many faces throughout their history - from an athletic center to a fast food mecca.
"I think the Union has responded to the needs of the University community," Sichel said. "The Union is used by all kinds of University organizations."
Michigan Student Assembly Treasurer Karie Morgan said that in the past the Union was more of a social outlet for students. The University may occupy the same physical location, but the University is a different place than it once was, Morgan said.
"The Union is becoming more of a student resource," said Morgan, an SNRE senior. "For most, the Union means grabbing food on campus. Maybe also a place to buy books."
Morgan said students are not likely to use the Union's resource unless they belong to an organization located in the Union.
"It's definitely not a social center," she said.
Head of Education and Information Services for University Library Barbara Mac Adam, who came to the University in 1966, said the Union was not a student activity center 30 years ago.
"I spent almost no time there," said Mac Adam, a '72 alumnae. "Coming here, my impression of the Union was of a slightly decrepit, seedy place - kind of a decrepit men's hotel."
Over time, student use of the Union has seen a serious decline, as students have found other recreational activities on campus, said Dick Kennedy, former vice president for University relations.
"The Union has lost its real focus," said Kennedy, a '54 alumnus. "Alumni used (the hotel) a lot for football games. It was a conference center for meetings that didn't involve students. (Students) didn't really see it as serving their needs."
Days gone by
The interior of the Union - once housing a swimming pool, bowling alley and hotel that have been replaced by computer labs, office space and the MUG eatery - has changed with the addition of technology and social outlets.
Schwimmer said students and faculty originally took greater advantage of the Union's facilities. The Union housed a swimming pool located where the current Union bookstore is located.
The swimming pool was eventually covered up to make room for University offices, including the Alumni Association's headquarters.
Former Alumni Association Director Bob Foreman said the association was involved with the removal of the pool, although a drop in its usage also contributed to the elimination.
"It was a matter of usage - there were much nicer pools at the University," said Foreman.
Despite construction, many students and alumni did not seem to notice the removal of the swimming area, Foreman said.
"My office was right where the diving board had been for the swimming pool," Foreman said. "Men would come in with their towels to come swimming in the middle of the Alumni Association office."
Also popular in the mid-'50's were student/faculty water polo games in the Union pool, Kennedy said.
"A bunch of people, including former (University) Regent (Gene) Power, used to have water polo matches in the Union pool that got very energetic - they were in their birthday suits," said Kennedy.
The Union once housed a hotel on its fourth floor that was removed in the '70s. Fine said he remembers staying the night at the Union during the time it was a hotel.
"It was a very different place (than) it is now," Fine said. "There was a big crowd there at the time."
Foreman said the former Union hotel attracted not only students and faculty, but also alumni.
"The Union has historically been a gathering point on campus," Foreman said. "For years it had overnight lodging ... alumni looked forward to coming back and staying at the University."
With the loss of the hotel, many alumni became detached from the University, he said.
"For years, students paid as part of their student fee a fee for the Union and at graduation they became lifetime members - it was always a badge of importance," Foreman said.
The '50s were a heyday for the Union, hosting dances nearly every weekend with live orchestras or bands, Kennedy said.
"My wife and I used to go to the dances on Saturday night," said Kennedy. "It was really quite an event - it was a very in thing to do because they were quite well attended."
Today, many organizations still hold dances in the Union ballroom, Schwimmer said.
LSA first-year student Johari Smith said she attends functions sponsored by the Black Greek Association held in the Union, but restrictions barring non-University students make the events unpopular.
"Other people from other schools can't attend Union parties," Smith said. The restrictions "make the party dull."
Engineering senior Don Chamberlin said he finds that the mood at the Union helps him study.
"It's the perfect atmosphere," Chamberlin said. "It's not too quiet where you can hear a pin drop, but it's not too loud where you can't study."
Follow the leader
The Union was the first large-scale building of its kind in the nation, and it served as a model for other universities to emulate.
Today, Indiana University at Bloomington is home to the largest student union, which was inspired by the Michigan Union, said Winston Shindell, executive director of the Indiana Memorial Union.
A student came to the Indiana campus from Ann Arbor and "wanted a similar organization started at the University," Shindell said.
The Indiana union, built in 1932, is roughly 500,000 square feet and contains ATMs, guest rooms, lounges, restaurants, a credit union, bookstore, copy center, barber shop, bowling alley, billiards tables, meeting rooms, a post office, student offices, movie theater, computer clusters and e-mail stations.
A monument in itself
All who witnessed the 1961 speech given by John F. Kennedy about the Peace Corps at 2 a.m. on the steps of the Union cannot forget the large crowd drawn to the spot.
"The (John F.) Kennedy speech was terribly exciting of course. It was in the dead of the night," Dick Kennedy said. "He was an impressive guy and I was thrilled."
Schwimmer said whatever role the Union plays in students' daily lives, it has a large impact on their memories of the University.
"A large number of students, faculty and alumni stroll through the Union reminiscing about their days at the Union," Schwimmer said.
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| DANA LINNANE/Daily Today, students still enjoy eating in the MUG eatery, but many students view the Michigan Union as a place to grab a hamburger or use an ATM machine, not as a center for social activism. |
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| BENTLEY HISTORICAL LIBRARY Male students eat in the Union's Tap Room. Before 1956, women were not allowed into the Union through the front entrance. |
02-13-98
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