Woodlands make up the ‘heart’ of campus

It is a common belief IU has a policy that if a tree is taken down on campus, two trees must be planted in its place. \nProfessor James Capshew said he’s never heard of a policy of that sort, but it shows the importance and value trees have on campus. \nCapshew explained that IU is one of few universities with woodlands in the heart of its campus. He said a lot of universities have huge grassy malls and maybe some trees but no substantive woods. \nCapshew said a lot of the landscaping around other parts of campus is made with reserved areas for woods. He said good examples are the woods between Goodbody Hall and around the president’s house. \nAccording to an extended brochure titled “The Woodland Campus of Indiana University,” IU’s campus was originally located on a five-acre plot near the south end of College Avenue and Second Street. Capshew said if you look at paintings of the old campus, it looks like a piece of ground that was completely excavated for buildings. In 1885, campus was moved to Dunn’s Woods, where 20 acres of land were purchased but no trees were cut down. \n“I think in that time, people started thinking the pioneer days are part of our history and trees are kind of an amenity,” Capshew said. “They’re not something to get rid of and get some ground clearing to grow crops.” \nIn 1885, biologist David Starr Jordan was president of the University, and he started building the academic institution around the University woodlands, Capshew said. The University buildings were developed in a semicircle around the woodlands. \nIU began buying more land and designing and placing buildings away from the woods. Dunn’s Woods became a 10-acre remnant of the original 20-acre campus. \n“(Dunn’s Woods) became this place of beauty and something to cherish, this idea that we have these woods and that they are important to us,” Capshew said. \nThere are still natural landmarks on campus today, including the Jordan River that flows through Dunn Meadow and the Centennial Tree, located between Maxwell Hall and the Student Building. The Centennial Tree is a white oak that was dedicated to the class of 1920 in connection with the hundredth anniversary of the University’s founding. The University has a wide range of trees and other specimens that add to the woodland life on campus. Some of the types of trees include the rare Yellowwood, which can be found on the south side of Rawles Hall and the Ginkgo, found between Kirkwood and Wylie halls.\nSince the original campus was moved in 1885, it has grown to 2,000 acres. Most of the growth took place under Herman B Wells’ presidency. Wells was a staunch advocate for green space on campus, believing that the IU campus was unique because it preserved areas of forest. \nIn his last commencement address, Wells stressed the importance of natural beauty on IU’s campus.\n“I hope our alumni will always insist upon retention of our precious islands of green and serenity – our most important physical asset, transcending even classrooms, libraries and laboratories in their ability to inspire students to dream long dreams of future usefulness and achievement – dreams that are an important and essential part of undergraduate college experience,” Wells said.