It is significant for its association with Charles R. Van Hise, "who led the Department of Mineralogy and Geology to national prominence" and then served as president of the university.

It was designed by Milwaukee architect Henry C. Koch and was later altered during construction by Allan D. Conover, a professor of civil engineering at the school.

A small, three-story round tower is found on each courtyard side of the two wings on the western extremity.

It originally hosted courses in geology, geography, physics, zoology, limnology, botany, anatomy, bacteriology, and medicine.

And from this building physicist Earle M. Terry and his students transmitted the first audio from their pioneering radio transmitter 9XM in 1917.