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The Students' Vision
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The Vision Realized
The Official Opening
Lest We Forget

On February 23, 1951, almost five years to the day from the beginning of the campaign, the War Memorial Gymnasium was unofficially opened.

The Herculite doors swung open to admit basketball spectators for the Evergreen conference basketball games. In an article appearing in the Ubyssey newspaper, John Napier-Hemy offered the following observations on the new gymnasium:

The inverted roof focussed spectator attention on the large springy floor. Throughout the $750,000 structure the emphasis has been on glass, which is both attractive and relatively cheap. Herculite doors, a ramp-like entrance, projecting stairs and an overall hanger-like appearance lend the gym an impression of striking modernity, which is in contrast to the staid, conservative architecture of other campus buildings.
(Ubyssey March 2, 1951).

War Memorial Gymnasium - April 1951
(UBC 3.1/1183)

The following year the building won a Massey Silver Medal for its design.

Front page | The Students' Vision | Fundraising Campaign | The Architects' Vision | Under Construction
The Vision Realized | The Official Opening | Lest We Forget

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