Newell Hall
Stadium Rd., Gainesville, FLNewell Hall is historically significant as the embodiment of the contributions of university-based practical and theoretical agricultural research to the economic development of Florida and the nation.
The Morrill Act of 1862, together with subsequent federal legislation, resulted in the establishment of an Agricultural Experiment Station on the campus of Florida Agricultural College, Lake City, in 1888. The purpose of the Station was to conduct scientific experiments and observations in order to disseminate new knowledge about Florida crops and soils. The potential of certain types of agriculture, especially citriculture, was becoming evident, and the role of the Agricultural Experiment Station was to stimulate further developments in agriculture, in order to allow Florida's farmers to take advantage of the national market. This market was becoming available to the state's farmers for the first time with the completion of railroad links between peninsular Florida and the growing urban centers to the north.
When the University of Florida was formed in 1906, the Agricultural Experiment Station moved to the new campus at Gainesville. It was originally located in Thomas Hall on the southern end of campus. Construction of a new building, now known as Newell Hall, began in 1909; it was completed the following year. The three-and-one-half-story structure was an indication of the growth in importance of the Station and its prominence as a cornerstone of the new university; it was designed to serve as a classroom building, and this wedding of classroom instruction to outside practical experience in Florida was formalized by the new Station's completion.
The Agricultural Experiment Station was renamed on May 12, 1944, in honor of Wilmon Newell. His career as Director of the Station, 1921-43; Dean of Agriculture, 1928-31; Provost for Agriculture, 1938-43; and Directo of the Agriculture Extension Service serves as a personal illustration of the close ties between academic and practical agriculture signified by the building named in his honor."
Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 1979.
The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation’s historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America’s historic and archeological resources.