Your Gifts at Work
Ensminger Pavilion Renovated Thanks to Your Gifts
 Students and faculty gathered for the annual Back to School Picnic, ca. 1950. |
Built in 1933, this building was known for decades as the Livestock Judging Pavilion. Thousands of animal science students have taken classes in the pavilion while archaeology students once practiced excavation techniques in one wing. But the pavilion has always been much more than a classroom.
In its heyday, the pavilion hosted a variety of events. Old photos show crowds of 800 attending the Livestock Feeders' Day outside the building in 1945.
 Bing Crosby, in a black hat, is standing behind the bull's head. |
Bing Crosby once attended a livestock judging event at the pavilion when his twin sons were briefly students at WSU in the early 1950s.
In the ’60s, Summer Palace community theater presentations were staged in the pavilion. In recent years, the horticulture club has held plant sales in the building. The pavilion was the scene of many autumn Land-Grant Day dances and auctions.
 Hundreds of people from all over the region came to the annual Livestock Feeders' Day. |
The pavilion was designed by university architect Stanley Smith, who also designed White Hall (now home of WSU’s Honors College), and Smith Gym. The pavilion was part of a complex of agriculture buildings east of Troy Hall, which included a poultry barn and a large beef barn. The beef barn was transformed into the Lewis Alumni Centre in the ’80s.
Thanks to the efforts of animal science professor Everett Martin, students, administrators and other faculty in the College of Agricultural, Human, and Natural Resource Sciences, as well as university administrators, in 2002 the pavilion was saved from demolition and a plan for its renovation was drawn up.
Most important, though, was the generous gift from Mrs. Audrey Ensminger, whose donation paid for a significant portion of pavilion renovation work. Thanks to Mrs. Ensminger, the pavilion is remains a historically important gathering place for the entire WSU community.
Mrs. Ensminger made the gift in memory of her husband, Dr. M.E. Ensminger, who was head of the animal sciences department at WSU from 1941 until 1962. Dr. Ensminger was instrumental in the construction of the Cattle Feeding Laboratory and Hilltop Stables, now recognized as one of the best light horse facilities in the nation. Dr. Ensminger’s energy, enthusiasm, and expertise also made the animal sciences department one of the best in the country. He wrote many books, some of which are still standards used in classrooms around the world. One of the most recognized animal scientists of the twentieth century, Dr. Ensminger was fond of giving credit to his wife for his may accomplishments.
Although both Dr. and Mrs. Ensminger have passed away, they leave behind them a living legacy in the M.E. and Audrey H. Ensminger Agricultural Pavilion, one that will be cherished and enjoyed by this and future generations.
Win-Win: Cook Farm Research Helps Bottom Line and Sustains Environment
James Cook was honored in June, 2007 with the dedication of the R. James Cook Agronomy Farm. With the 140-acre farm, Washington State University is playing a major leadership role in an agricultural transformation as revolutionary as the conversion from horses to tractors. The changes involve nothing less than the “retooling” of the region’s agriculture. At the same time, the research serves both the needs of farmer’s to sustain themselves economically and the public’s need for more environmentally sustainable food production.
Jim Cook was one of the University's most honored research scientists. His work in plant pathology and biotechnology was recognized internationally. In 1993, he was named to the National Academy of Sciences, one the highest awards for an American scientist. That same year, he received the USDA Distinguished Service Award and was made an honorary member of the British Society for Plant Pathology. The American Phytopathological Society honored him in 1995 and again in 1997.
Cook retired in 2005 after 40 years of service to WSU and the USDA Agricultural Research Service. He was interim dean of the College of Agricultural, Human, and Natural Resource Sciences from 2003 to 2005 and, from 1998 to 2003, he held the R. J. Cook Chair in Wheat Research.
In 1998, a Cook and a team of scientists and engineers at WSU took charge of the WSU-owned land 7 miles northeast of Pullman. The team’s the dual and on-going goals were to help farmers in the dryland Pacific Northwest make the transition to continuous direct-seeding (no-till farming) and to provide the scientific and technical foundation for use of global positioning systems (GPS) and other precision-agriculture technologies. The farm replicates real-world conditions so that the interdisciplinary research conducted there can be applied directly to commercial production.
Research at the farm emphasizes direct-seeding, also known as no-till farming, which involves placement of seed and fertilizer into soil.
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