Memorial Union: The Transcendent Tower

Making the Memorial

Following the "War to End All Wars," a patriotic movement swept across American college campuses to honor students who fought and died in the war. In his 1919 commencement address, Walter Miller, Dean of the Graduate Faculty, called for the construction of a memorial dedicated to Missouri’s deceased sons. The Memorial Building Committee, a committee of nine MU faculty, staff, and administrators devoted to raising support and funds for the memorial, turned his dream into a reality. They transformed the previously planned "Missouri Union" into "Memorial Union," a student union with a central bell tower and two wings commemorating the university’s fallen soldiers and sailors. The project was expanded in 1923 to include a new football stadium, "Memorial Stadium."

Architectural drawing of proposed Missouri Union (Courtesy of University Archives, C:0/46/3)

Architectural drawing of proposed Memorial Union (Courtesy of University Archives, C:1/41/6)

Memorial Union Exhibition

Exhibition Home

History of Memorial Tower

Making the Memorial

In Memoriam

Signs, Symbols, and Seals: The Sculpture of Memorial Tower

Figured in Stone: The Arcade Sculptures of Memorial Tower

Tradition: Tipping the Cap

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