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| Aided by members of WSU's historic preservation committee and the George Washington chapter of the Kansas State Society Sons of the American Revolution, George Platt brought the history of the bridge to public attention. |
The afternoon of Feb. 22, WSU’s George Washington Bicentennial Memorial Bridge, located just south of Levitt Arena, received its inaugural dedication. This fact may strike some people as odd, since the bridge was constructed in 1932.
The original dedication was supposed to have coincided with the 200th anniversary of the birth of the nation’s first president, George Washington, who was born on Feb. 22, 1732. But due to the constraints of the Great Depression, the University of Wichita classes of 1931 and 1932 had trouble raising the funds necessary for the completion of the bridge by the time of Washington’s anniversary.
The City of Wichita stepped up to help with finances, and the bridge was finally completed. But because the bridge’s completion didn’t match Washington’s birthday, its dedication was postponed for 70 years.
“In this time of national concern,” said Ted D. Ayres, the university’s general counsel, during his comments at the dedication, “it is appropriate that we honor and commemorate George Washington and take this opportunity to create and dedicate this permanent connection between George Washington and the history of Wichita State University.”
The bridge was designed by Professor Clayton Henri Staples (1892-1978), director of art at Wichita University from 1930-1950, and was constructed from the remaining stones of Fairmount Hall by Normand S. Patton, an architect from Chicago. Fairmount Hall, built in 1887 and destroyed by fire in 1929, was the first building of Fairmount College, which became the Municipal University of Wichita in 1926 and Wichita State in 1964.
The George Washington Bridge, which now links Alumni Drive to the parking lot south of Levitt Arena, was once part of a picturesque area of campus. It was built over an intermittent stream that led to a lake large enough to accommodate rowboats.
“When Henry Levitt Arena was constructed in the 1950s, the pond was filled for parking and the stream flow was diverted to an underground storm sewer,” explains George Platt, associate professor emeritus and member of the wsu Historical Preservation Commission, about the absence of the pond and stream the bridge was originally built to span.
“The stream banks,” he adds, “were filled to the point where little of the bridge was left in view, particularly on the west side. Only a few of the many passersby know that it represents the origin of Wichita Ladies’ College, Fairmount Ladies’ College, Fairmount College, the Municipal University of Wichita and Wichita State University.”
Following is WSU President Don Beggs’ speech at the dedication:
The George Washington Bicentennial Memorial Bridge stands as tribute to one of our nation’s greatest leaders and as a significant physical connection to the historical origins of this great university. It also serves as an important physical reminder of Wichita State University’s close, interdependent and ongoing relationship with the City of Wichita.
It was the City of Wichita that nurtured this university through its formative years as a municipal institution, and it was the City of Wichita that provided the funds in 1932 to build this bridge. Today, the City of Wichita continues to be a significant supporter of the university.
The dedication of this bridge offers the opportunity for us to say, once again, “Thank you, Wichita!”
We also thank those individuals who have worked with such dedication to ensure that this bridge and these stones are preserved for generations to come as a reminder of the great heritage of Wichita State University.
