In the Spotlight: 30 Years of McKinly Lab

Back in 1975, the students and faculty of the Department of Biological Sciences regularly made the walk from Wolf Hall to Drake Hall instead of McKinly Lab in order to participate in teaching labs. That's because back then, McKinly Lab didn't exist. However, the department desperately needed a building closer to home that could handle its increasing enrollment, so in January 1976, construction of McKinly began. "They had to build it," said Dr. David Smith, "we were expanding so much."

It turned out that Dr. Smith and his graduate students would have a front row seat for the construction. His lab was located on the third floor on the east side of Wolf Hall, and what was once just a view of a parking lot turned into a daily show that lasted almost two years. On a whim, the lab decided to take an occasional picture to chronicle the crew's progress. "We had a camera and were just watching one day and decided to take pictures," he explained. "You know, boys and their toys."

While those pictures were made into slides, they ended up sitting in a box for 30 years. Coincidentally in 2007, construction on McKinly began again - this time, to replace the roof on the basement level to prevent leaks. Dr. Smith thought it might be a good idea to do the same thing a second time, so he asked to have pictures taken from the same vantage point (his old lab space is now occupied by Drs. Carlton Cooper and Erica Selva). In the meantime, he located those original construction slides from 1976-1977. We are pleased to provide the best images from both sets here as a tribute to the 30 years of McKinly Lab.

McKinly Lab Construction (Photos by David Smith)

January 1976

February 1976

Foundation below basement is constructed

June 1976

Foundation for pillar supports is constructed

November 1976

December 1976

Ceiling materials for the basement are put in place

December 1976

Ground floor nearning completion, second floor begun

December 1976

Pillars and floor for second, third, and fourth floors in place

January 1977

January 1977

Portions of south wall on second, third, and fourth floors in place

February 1977

March 1977

July 1977

July 1977

McKinly Lab Basement Renovation (Photos by Marc Drumm)

June 2007

June 2007

June 2007

Half of brick layer completed, skylight glass removed

July 2007

July 2007

Skylight glass replaced, brick layer almost completed

July 2007

August 2007

McKinly Lab Renovation Completed (Photo by Kathy F. Atkinson)

September 2007

News & Events
» In The Spotlight
» In The Spotlight: 30 Years of McKinly Lab

E-mail link to this page
Printer-friendly format

Home	Search for

About Us	Education	Research	People	News & Events
In the Spotlight: 30 Years of McKinly Lab Back in 1975, the students and faculty of the Department of Biological Sciences regularly made the walk from Wolf Hall to Drake Hall instead of McKinly Lab in order to participate in teaching labs. That's because back then, McKinly Lab didn't exist. However, the department desperately needed a building closer to home that could handle its increasing enrollment, so in January 1976, construction of McKinly began. "They had to build it," said Dr. David Smith, "we were expanding so much." It turned out that Dr. Smith and his graduate students would have a front row seat for the construction. His lab was located on the third floor on the east side of Wolf Hall, and what was once just a view of a parking lot turned into a daily show that lasted almost two years. On a whim, the lab decided to take an occasional picture to chronicle the crew's progress. "We had a camera and were just watching one day and decided to take pictures," he explained. "You know, boys and their toys." While those pictures were made into slides, they ended up sitting in a box for 30 years. Coincidentally in 2007, construction on McKinly began again - this time, to replace the roof on the basement level to prevent leaks. Dr. Smith thought it might be a good idea to do the same thing a second time, so he asked to have pictures taken from the same vantage point (his old lab space is now occupied by Drs. Carlton Cooper and Erica Selva). In the meantime, he located those original construction slides from 1976-1977. We are pleased to provide the best images from both sets here as a tribute to the 30 years of McKinly Lab. McKinly Lab Construction (Photos by David Smith) January 1976 February 1976 June 1976 November 1976 December 1976 December 1976 December 1976 January 1977 January 1977 February 1977 March 1977 July 1977 July 1977 McKinly Lab Basement Renovation (Photos by Marc Drumm) June 2007 June 2007 June 2007 July 2007 July 2007 July 2007 August 2007 McKinly Lab Renovation Completed (Photo by Kathy F. Atkinson) September 2007				News & Events » In The Spotlight » In The Spotlight: 30 Years of McKinly Lab E-mail link to this page Printer-friendly format
University of Delaware • Department of Biological Sciences • 118 Wolf Hall • Newark, DE 19716