Historical Buildings- Amphitheatre

History

In 1924 the Agricultural College of Utah dedicated an amphitheatre on a natural site on "College Hill" that would seat around eight hundred. The architects and many others involved with the project pronounced that its location was one of the most attractive sites in America. The picturesque views from the amphitheater include an overlook of the beautiful Cache Valley with the steep Wellsville Mountain Range rising above its western reaches. Behind the amphitheatre, to the east, is the Wasatch mountain range above the college campus.

For many years following, the College wanted to rebuild the amphitheatre in order for it to better accommodate many of the official events for the college such as commencement. In 1932 the Federal Emergency Relief Administration confirmed that it would construct the new amphitheatre. While the FERA, along with some student employment, provided most of the labor, the materials for the structure were mostly donated through gifts from various classes from as early as 1925.

The new amphitheatre was patterned after ancient Greek amphitheatres and could seat 1,500 people. The concrete structure took about two months to build and required slightly over $3,000 in materials and nearly $4,900 in labor to build.

As well as being used for commencement exercises, the amphitheatre was used for music festivals, summer festivals, and evening lectures during summer school. It was used many years for a variety of events as the weather permitted. The use of the facility declined, however, due to an increase in the student population and noise from the expanded Highway 89 nearby. The amphitheatre is still used on occasion for various activities held on campus.