About UMD

Then and Now

UMD's 125th Anniversary

Left, students dancing in the 1960s. Right, students dancing, present day.

UMD Then and Now

Three photos of UMD's Old Main building: As completed in 1901, during the fire of 1993, and present day with only the building's arches.

Left: Old Main opened in 1901 as the main building for the Duluth Normal School.
Center: Old Main was closed and awaiting renovation when it was destroyed by fire in 1993.
Right: Old Main Park in 2008, with the building’s arches visible.

Left, students in front of Old Main. Right, the arches of Old Main in the present day, after the fire.

Left: Students outside the front arches of Old Main in 1954.
Right: The remains of the arches in 2019.

First Year Students

Left, two students standing next to a bus in the 1950s, one is wearing a beanie that says "Frosh Camp."

Left, students board a bus to "Frosh Camp" in the 1940s.
Right, the Bulldog Scramble at 2019 Welcome Week.

Commencement

Top, portraits of seven women from the DSTC class of 1903. Bottom, members of the class of 2019.

Top, portraits of seven students from the class of 1903.
Bottom, members of the class of 2019.

Kirby Student Center

Left, students in Kirby Lounge in 1969. Right, students studying in Kirby Lounge in 2016.

Top: Students relax in Kirby Lounge in 1971.
Bottom: The 2012 renovation of Kirby Student Center resulted in a more modern, student-centered space.

The Ven Den

Left, students in the Ven Den, 1969. Right, students in the Ven Den in 2015.

Top: Students hanging out in the Ven Den, 1979.
Bottom: The Ven Den in 2017, after an extensive remodel that modernized the space while retaining its mid-century modern aesthetic.

Outdoor Education

Left, Professor teaching students to cross country ski in the late 1950s. Right, students in a ski lesson in 2016.

Top Right: Sociology Professor Walter Baeumler and students during a skiing class, 1950s.
Bottom Right: Students learn to cross-country ski at Bagley Nature Center in 2016.

Left: Students on the Old Main campus, carrying picks and shovels. Right: An aquatics class catching specimens in Bagley Nature Center.

Left: Students on the Old Main campus, carrying picks and shovels.
Right: An aquatics class catching specimens in Bagley Nature Center.

Study Spaces on Campus

Left, a student studying in a chair in the Tweed Museum. Right, students studying outside in 2019

Top: A student concentrates hard on his studies in the Tweed Museum, 1970s
Bottom: Students working outside, Spring 2019.

Bulldogs Outdoors

Left, students sitting outside Alworth Hall. Right, students studying in a hammock.

Left, students sitting outside Alworth Hall.
Right, students studying in a hammock.

Tweed Museum of Art

Left: The Tweed Museum under construction in 1954. Right: The Tweed Museum in 2017. The Tweed now has a permanent collection of 10,000 art pieces.

Right: The Tweed Museum under construction in 1954.
Left: The Tweed Museum in 2017. The Tweed now has a permanent collection of 10,000 art pieces.

Homecoming

Left: Duluth State Teachers College homecoming court, 1941. Right: students in the homecoming parade, 2016.

Left: Duluth State Teachers College homecoming court, 1941.
Right: students in the homecoming parade, 2016.

Sailing on Lake Superior

Left, students sailing in 1969. Right, students sailing, present day.

Left: UMD students sailing in Duluth Harbor, 1969.
Right: 2016: Students enjoy a sailing excursion in 2016.