Oklahoma Memorial Union - University of Oklahoma - Norman, Oklahoma
Posted by: 
gparkes
N 35° 12.561 W 097° 26.641
14S E 641629 N 3897368
The Oklahoma University has an outstanding series of markers, explaining the names and events of different locations. This marker can be found in front of the student union.
Waymark Code: WM8AGK
Location: Oklahoma, United States
Date Posted: 02/28/2010
Views: 15
The narrative on this marker reads:
Oklahoma Memorial Union
This Union building, along with Memorial Stadium, honors the University of Oklahoma students who died in World War I. In later years, it has honored those who have served their country in all wars and national emergencies. The idea for a student union had been present as early as 1916, but the onset of the war the next year halted planning for it. With the burning of the YMCA building in 1922, however, a new type of facility was needed. In 1925, under President James S. Buchanan, fundraising for the Union building and the football stadium were joined to initiate a $1 million Stadium-Union campaign. In January, 1928, students approved a $2.50 per semester Stadium-Union fee. The Union building was completed in November.
Although it eventually became both popular and successful, the Union suffered many difficulties in its first years. Students began to protest the Stadium-Union fee. In 1931, Senator Hardin Ballard called for an investigation into unfair business practices and gambling at the Union. The only incriminating evidence uncovered was one student’s testimony that he had heard another say, “I’ll bet you a dime I’ll put the nine ball in the side pocket.” The investigation found no fault in Union practices and stated in its report that “the Union is serving a most useful purpose and has answered a great need of the school.” Yet this was not the end of the Union’s problems. In 1939, Governor Leon C. Phillips, who opposed Ted Beaird, the Union’s longtime director, pushed for a fifty percent cut in the student Union fee, which would have decimated the Union’s budget. He was unsuccessful, although a smaller cut was made.
Throughout its history the Union has grown in both size and function. In 1936, the clock tower was added with the help of the Work Projects Administration. Two wings were completed in 1951, the Union Parking Garage was added in 1982, and major renovations and additions were started in 1995. Throughout its history, the Oklahoma Memorial Union has served as a meeting place for students, faculty, parents, and alumni, and has bee an important center of campus activity.