KILDEE HALL AND LUSH AUDITORIUM

At the Board meeting of February 8, 1923, President Pearson recommended asking for an appropriation of $250,000 for an Animal Husbandry Building. The next recorded reference to such a facility was in the June 3, 1950, issue of the Iowa State Daily where it was said, “Other tentative plans include the construction of an Animal Science building.” The Daily reported, on September 23, 1954, that the next legislature was being asked for an appropriation of $1,500,000 for an Animal Industry Building. In 1956 the request was for $1,800,000 and in 1958 for $1,890,000.

The 59th General Assembly, in the spring of 1961, appropriated the sum of $1,738,000 for an Animal Industries Building without Equipment.¹ A grant of $200,000 from the United States Public Health Service and one of $50,000 from the National Science Foundation supplemented the state appropriation.

Construction contracts were awarded in May 1963.²

In August of 1963 it was decided to proceed with plans for the auditorium addition to the building, and contracts for that work were signed in September 1964.³

Discussing the function of the building on October 16, 1963, the Iowa State Daily reported, “Animal, dairy and poultry science offices and animal nutrition and physiology laboratories will be moved into the new building.”

The mural in the south corridor was painted by artist-in-residence Dwight Kirsch.

The main building was ready for use in the fall of 1965 and the lecture hall a year later.

Herbert H. Kildee, for whom the building was named in March 1965, was head of the Animal Husbandry department from 1918 until 1933 when he became Dean of Agriculture, a position he retained until 1949.

The lecture hall became the Lush Auditorium by action of the Board in June 1973, named for Jay L. Lush, distinguished professor and member of the National Academy of Sciences.