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Heating Plants
IMAGE TITLE DESCRIP IMAGE TITLE DESCRIP IMAGE TITLE DESCRIP IMAGE TITLE DESCRIP	When steam became a primary source for heating the buildings across campus, it became necessary to construct facilities that would produce the steam. The first two heating plants were built in 1879. [53] The first was located near University Hall and the other was connected to the Chemical Laboratory. Underground steam tunnels linked both plants as well as the campus buildings. [53] As the campus grew, it became necessary to construct a third heating plant to serve buildings on the southeast corner of campus, making the plant adjoining the chemical laboratory obsolete. This cut stone structure built in 1894 could be seen around campus with its towering 125 foot smokestack. [53] Before it was constructed, the university hoped that the plant would set a precedent for future heating plants. [53] After the new heating plant was built on Huron Street, the facility was turned into an engineering laboratory. However, in 1923 it was used by the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps. [53] When the Homeopathic Hospital on Catherine Street was constructed, it had its own heating plant because its location was off the main campus. However, with new buildings added in that area, the Hospital Boiler House was constructed, and saw several upgrades and additions. [53] The campus continued to grow even more and it was no longer practical to add more heating plants. Thus, the campus Boiler House with its steel stacks was built as a central heating plant. [53] New steam tunnels were constructed, and the plant saw continued upgrades for twenty years. [53] After that facility failed to meet demands, a new (and current) central heating plant was constructed in an area called the “Cat Hole,” which is known today as the Hill Area or District. [53] Located off Washington Street, this building received continuous machinery upgrades and a major addition in 1939. Today, the additions are slightly recognizable from Huron Street where there is a difference in styles. But one feature that has remained familiar to students of the past and present is the soaring brick chimneys emitting steam, very visible during the winter. Today, the plant is capable of producing up to 45,000 kilowatts of electricity. It supplies 130 university buildings with electricity and 100 buildings with heat and water.[108]
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