Old Main

An architectural icon for Penn Staters around the world, Old Main provides offices for the University president, provost, and many other senior administrators. Opened in 1930, it was designed by one of the nation’s premier collegiate architects, Charles Klauder, and is considered by many to be his signature work. The building is open to the public during business hours. If you have a chance, go inside to the Land-Grant Foyer, where you’ll see the majestic Land-Grant Frescoes by Henry Varnum Poor. They depict the first century of the University’s history. Old Main stands on the site of the original main building, which welcomed Penn State’s very first students in 1859. Some of the stone used in today’s Old Main comes from that historic structure.