Campus of Michigan State University
[2] However, the size of the campus, combined with its curving roads and lack of a centralized quadrangle, can make it difficult for newcomers to navigate.
[3] Before the white settlement of the region, the area that is now East Lansing was a combination of dense virgin oak forest and tamarack swampland.
Besides Cowles House, one other survived and was moved into the city of East Lansing; the rest were demolished between 1922 and 1948 to make room for the north complex of residence halls and the student center called MSU Union.
[5] In December 1879, Professor William J. Beal buried seeds of 23 common plants in 20 jars of sand (to prevent water accumulation) in various locations around campus.
At certain fixed intervals, currently every 20 years, a jar is dug up to determine which seeds still germinate after their prolonged periods of unlit isolation.
The jar dug up in April 2000, after 120 years, found only a few specimens surviving to germinate, notably Verbascum blattaria (moth mullein).
[6] The most recently unearthed jar, dug up in April 2021, yielded similar results: 13 Verbascum blattaria seeds were the only ones to germinate.
[7] In 1871, President Abbot proposed that the Board of Trustees "take steps to provide for the proper layout of the college grounds, planting of trees, location of buildings, etc., by a competent landscape gardener, as soon as means can be spared."
[8] In 1906, O. C. Simonds a well-known prairie school landscape architect was hired, he simplified the road system, planned walks and planting areas.
In a 1906 letter to the Board for Trustee's "This area is, I am sure, that feature of the College which is most pleasantly and affectionately remembered by the students after they leave their Alma Mater, and I doubt if any instruction given has a greater effect upon their lives.
The driving factor in campus development of was the automobile this the south featuring buildings and streets generally laid out in a grid system with more land dedicated to parking lots.
Its buildings are an eclectic collection of architectural styles including Collegiate Gothic, Beaux Arts, and Richardsonian Romanesque.
South campus also has more surface parking lots, due partly to the sporting and performing arts venues.
The MSU Clinical Center and the Life Sciences Building are both in this part of campus, as is a nature preserve known as the Baker Woodlot.
South still of the university service buildings and the CSX railroad lie thousands of acres of university-owned farmland and agricultural research related facilities such the MSU Pavilion.
The proximity of the farmland to campus helps MSU retain a rural feel in keeping with its roots as an agricultural college that mixes with the more urban atmosphere of East Lansing just a mile north.
The Demmer Center is an educational place for students, faculty, and community members to learn to safely handle firearms.
The third statue, erected in 2003, is a 12-foot likeness of famed Spartan Basketball star and Los Angeles Laker, Earvin "Magic" Johnson.
Lying east of Farm Lane just north of the river, it is a popular spot for campus events such as outdoor summer theatre, Greek house tailgating, and candlelight vigils.
Passing through crowded areas of campus, these roads receive high volumes of pedestrian and vehicle traffic.
[23] The MSU-CTC (MSU CATA Transportation Center) is the hub of bus service on campus, and many local destinations both on- and off-campus may be reached from there.
The East Lansing Amtrak station is located on campus, offering daily direct service to and from Chicago, Kalamazoo, Flint, Port Huron, and several other cities throughout Michigan via the Blue Water line.
