The story
The University of Evansville was founded in 1854. The institution struggled financially during its time in Moores Hill, and a fire destroyed Moore Hall in 1915. The institution continued to operate in a second building, Carnegie Hall, until the move to Evansville. The former campus in Moores Hill continued operation as an elementary and high school. Carnegie Hall is now maintained as a museum.
In 1919, the school moved to Evansville and its name was changed to Evansville College. It operated in temporary quarters in downtown Evansville until Administration Hall (now Olmsted Hall) was completed in 1922. This is the only building remaining on campus from before World War II.
In the period from World War II to 1960, Evansville College grew significantly. Enrollment grew from about 400 during the Great Depression to 1,500 in 1946. Also following the war, the Science and Engineering Building and Alumni Memorial Union were commissioned. The Clifford Memorial Library was completed in 1957. Five residence halls were built between 1958 and 1967, along with a fitness center, dining hall, and an art building. In 1967, the school was renamed to the University of Evansville. Also in 1967, a new theater building, Hyde Hall, housing Shanklin Theater was finished.
In 2010, the University of Evansville completed early its Endowment Campaign to raise $80 million after having raised an additional $60 million five years previous to the new campaign. On July 1, 2018, Christopher M. Pietruszkiewicz became the University of Evansville's 24th president.
The University of Evansville faced significant criticism from the Evansville community over its handling of the sale of approximately 42 acres of land near Wesselman Woods. In January 2019, UE announced plans to sell this off-campus property to fund the construction of a new campus health and wellness center. This proposal alarmed supporters of Wesselman Woods Nature Preserve, who feared that selling the land for commercial development would remove a valuable buffer zone between urban development and the preserve's old-growth forest, potentially harming its delicate ecosystem. Critics accused the administration of prioritizing financial gain over environmental and community concerns, which further damaged the university's reputation. UE sold the property to Wesselman Woods in 2023 for $2 million.
From Wikipedia’s article on University of Evansville, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.5