[3] In 1891-1893 the legislature allocated funds for a horticulture building, based on increasing enrollment and practical results like the Babcock butterfat test which the UW's ag department had already produced.

That first section consisted of the central tower and the east wing, built to house the horticulture department.

Richardsonian Romanesque typically includes a front profile that is dramatically asymmetric; that was achieved in the early years by a large windmill atop the west tower.

King was a son of Whitewater who studied at Cornell University, then taught science at River Falls State Normal School.

King formulated methods of wind erosion prevention, and constructed the first weighing lysimeters for water use studies.

In 1915 the Soils Annex wing was added on, designed by Arthur Peabody advised by Laird and Cret, three stories with walls of cream brick and half-timbering.