Illini 411: What do you know about that sycamore by the Main Library?
A: Believe it or not, that sycamore is the oldest tree on campus. When the University opened in 1868, it consisted of nothing more than the original building, 10 marshy
Illini 411: Who was the U of I’s first Olympic gold medalist?
A: Edward F. Lindberg, 1909 ENG. At the 1912 Summer Olympics in Stockholm—the fifth modern games, since their start in 1896—Lindberg was part of the world record-setting 4 x 400
Illini 411: I lived at 804 W. Green St. during college and heard it was John Milton Gregory’s house. Is that true?
A: Only if he’d been re-animated! Gregory, the University’s first regent, or president (1867–1880), died in 1898, while the house at 804 W. Green wasn’t built until 1920. However, it
Illini 411: Does Def Leppard hold Assembly Hall’s attendance record?
The 1988 Def Leppard show was a big one—16,606—and lead singer Joe Elliott announced from the stage that it had broken Elvis Presley’s all-time attendance record. Only—dramatic pause!—it hadn’t. Whether
Illini 411: Who are the oldest living alumni?
A: According to our records, at of March 2024 the oldest alumni are Mabel Craf, ’30 ED (109), of Cedar Rapids, Iowa; followed by Otto Klein, ’37 ACES (108), of
Illini 411: Did U of I students fight for women’s suffrage?
A: You betcha—and from way back, too. During the University’s early years—we’re talking 19th century, here—suffrage was one of the most popular debate topics between the women’s and men’s student
Illini 411: What’s the coldest day ever recorded on campus?
A: Get out your toboggans, friends! And your down vests and long underwear and hand warmers and all that other cold weather razzamatazz. Or, better yet, just stay inside beside
Illini 411: Why’s the U of I in Urbana?
A: Because of backroom deals so brazen, they could even make a politician blush! The credit goes to Clark Robinson Griggs, a state representative and former Urbana mayor, who in
Illini 411: I read that the “land” of “land-grant” universities was stolen from Indigenous tribes. Is that true of Illinois?
A: Yes, unfortunately. The Morrill Act of 1862, which created the land-grant university system, gave each U.S. state an allotment of “public lands” that it could lease or sell to
Illini 411: Did Richard Nixon campaign on campus in 1960?
When Nixon was Eisenhower’s vice president (1953–61), he visited Champaign-Urbana for campaign stops in 1954 and 1956. During his own 1960 presidential campaign, Nixon visited the small Illinois town of
