Myths, history surround campus tree

IU spends a lot of time and money preserving bits of history throughout campus, but sometimes those bits of history are not held in archives or museums. Those who have visited the Chemistry Building know that a tree stands within its walls – a living piece of IU history for generations to see. \nMany myths surround the origin of the American Beech tree perched at the southern end of the building’s foundation, including one in which the tree came from Japan as a gift and another in which Herman B Wells planted the tree, a few staff members in the building said. There is no proof Wells planted the tree, but the renowned former president and University chancellor did play a vital role in preserving it. Wells’ love of nature and conservation enacted the policy aimed at maintaining every living tree on campus.\n“It is very hard to remove a tree on campus,” said Jack Baker, director of facilities for the Chemistry Building. “You have to go through a committee, and even then people will still complain.”\nWhen construction on the addition to the Chemistry Building began in 1986, the position of the tree posed a small problem. Not only did IU staff members want a quality architectural design made from the existing building, they wanted to preserve the aesthetics of the surrounding area, said Terry Clapacs, University vice president and chief administrative officer. \nClapacs was one of the University administrators who sat down with the architect of the project to see how to build the structure without compromising the tree.\n“We had the opportunity to save the tree,” he said. “(We) talked to the architect and went over the specifications to allow it to remain and to protect it.”\nThe Chemistry Building addition was constructed with Indiana limestone carved in the style of the original 1931 structure. \nThe architectural firm involved in the project, Harley Ellington Pierce Yee Associates Inc., now called Harley Ellington Design, of Southfield, Mich., was presented with an award for the project by the Detroit chapter of the American Institute of Architects, said Robin Nordstrom, a media technologist in the Chemistry Building. The architect did not back down at the challenge of building around a living tree, and in the end, it paid off.\n“When (the College of) Arts and Sciences does tours, people are always asking about the tree,” Nordstrom said.\nAnd there it stands outside the building in an amphitheater entrance – a tree growing in \na courtyard.\n“The idea is: If it dies, it dies and we will take it out,” Baker said. “As you can see, it is still there.”