This week marks the start of Archives Gold: 50 Objects for UMBC's 50th, a special series from the Library showcasing 50 different objects that tell the story of UMBC. Every Thursday we will present a new object from the University Archives - be it a photograph, pin, yearbook, playbill, etc.- leading up to the 50th Anniversary of UMBC's opening in September of next year. To kick off the series, the first object we present is a brick from the Gym I building.
Brick from Gym I, 1999, Institutional Advancement Records, University Archives, Collection 97, Special Collections, University of Maryland, Baltimore County (Baltimore, MD)
Gym I was among the earliest buildings constructed on the UMBC campus, along with Lecture Hall and Academic One, which all debuted when the university first opened in 1966. The building had athletic areas, like a basketball court, but it mainly functioned as a student center with a commuter cafeteria and spaces that were often reserved for student dances and performances. Gym I remained as UMBC's student center until 1999, when the building was torn down and a new student center, The Commons, was constructed in its place. The plaque on the brick says, "Brick from the past, building for the future. UMBC Gym I, 1966-1999."
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