Students strolling past solemn cemetery markers while towering buildings loom overhead – this striking image comes from 1963 sketches proposing a significant addition to the University of Oregon (UO) campus. These drawings envisioned structures erected on pilings above the Pioneer Cemetery Eugene Oregon, a concept that today seems both surreal and historically significant.
The vintage sketches depict the cemetery, located on the southern edge of the UO campus, almost as a park nestled beneath elevated buildings. The resting place of Eugene’s early pioneers was seemingly relegated to a secondary consideration, overshadowed by the burgeoning ambitions of higher education.
These very sketches, documented in the Daily Emerald from the 1960s and further explored in student theses, allowed Eugene Weekly to piece together a fascinating chapter in the University of Oregon’s history intertwined with the Pioneer Cemetery Eugene Oregon. It was a period when the UO seriously contemplated constructing buildings directly over this historical burial ground.
Roxi Thoren, Head of the Landscape Architecture Department at the UO, offers insight into the architectural rationale of the time. She explains that the concept of elevated buildings, cemetery aside, was “standard architecture of the time.”
According to Thoren, this idea was inspired by the “tower in the park” concept championed by pioneering French architect Le Corbusier. The vision was of a “continuous horizontal green plane, and the city will be this expansive garden,” she elaborates.
Thoren describes the prevailing mindset as progressive and technocratic, emphasizing, “It’s about technology freeing us from the vicissitudes of nature.”
However, viewed through a contemporary lens, these plans for the Pioneer Cemetery Eugene Oregon appear strikingly insensitive and out of touch with historical preservation.
While perhaps unsettling, the university’s ambitious plans are not entirely surprising when considering the institution’s trajectory. Even before the significant influx of Phil Knight’s philanthropy, the UO demonstrated considerable ambition. Back in 1963, the university was already exhibiting a pattern familiar today: strategically eyeing nearby land, seeking real estate acquisition, and building not just academic facilities but also its institutional prestige.
In 1963, the architectural firm Lutes and Amundson developed five distinct plans for the University of Oregon to expand onto the land occupied by the Pioneer Cemetery Eugene Oregon. The most audacious – and arguably unbelievable – proposal was to build structures directly above the existing graves, ostensibly without disturbing them.
Thoren acknowledges the appeal of the tower-in-a-park concept but deems some of the unexecuted designs, particularly the cemetery plan, as somewhat extreme. “A tower in a park is one thing,” she remarks, “A tower in a cemetery is another.”
She further notes that architects of that era sometimes exhibited a detachment from the existing environment, prioritizing their construction ambitions over the inherent characteristics and limitations of the space.
This apparent disregard for pre-existing conditions seems evident in Lutes and Amundson’s proposals for the Pioneer Cemetery Eugene Oregon. The plans depicted a landscaped graveyard with pedestrian paths for student access. Above, buildings were envisioned, elevated and supported by beams. Skybridges were designed to connect students from other parts of campus directly to their classrooms situated above the cemetery.
Essentially, the University of Oregon’s desire for expansion was so intense that it was willing to consider erecting buildings on stilts directly over a graveyard, the Pioneer Cemetery Eugene Oregon.
“That is shocking,” states Ocean Howell, Associate Professor of Architectural History at the University of Oregon’s Clark Honors College, upon reviewing the architectural drawings. His shock stems not only from the premise of the plans but also from the fact that they were seriously considered as viable options in 1963.
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Architectural drawing of proposed University of Oregon expansion over Pioneer Cemetery Eugene Oregon in 1963 ](https://eugeneweekly.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/20191031coverstory-Scan-1.jpg)
Whose Cemetery? A History of Dispute
Long before these grand architectural schemes and skybridge proposals for the cemetery, quieter conflicts were brewing, challenging the governance of the Pioneer Cemetery Eugene Oregon. Internal divisions within the Odd Fellows Cemetery Association sparked over a decade of disputes concerning the land, with the university frequently involved in the periphery. The Odd Fellows Lodge held ownership of the cemetery at the time.
The association fractured into two factions: the Odd Fellows Cemetery Association and the Pioneer Memorial Park Association. The Odd Fellows group suspected that the newly formed Pioneer Association intended to cede cemetery rights to the University of Oregon.
Subsequently, the Odd Fellows Association rebranded itself as the Eugene Pioneer Cemetery Association, aiming to distance itself from the Lodge and reclaim the property rights.
These two entities engaged in legal battles, and at one juncture, the Eugene Pioneer Cemetery Association argued in court that the Pioneer Memorial Park Association had allowed the Pioneer Cemetery Eugene Oregon to become so overgrown that it posed a “fire hazard” and presented an “unsightly appearance.”
The five expansion plans conceived by Lutes and Amundson envisioned the university transforming the Pioneer Cemetery Eugene Oregon into functional academic space. The most unconventional of these was the Le Corbusier-inspired tower-in-the-cemetery concept.
This particular plan garnered the support of state Representative Ed Elder and became known as “Elder’s Compromise.”
The proposed plan incorporated utility tunnels and vehicular access “within 30 feet of roadways where excavation without disturbing graves would be possible.” Furthermore, the plans suggested that “some ground floor service areas and stairways could be located in vacant grave areas.”
However, Howell clarified to EW that constructing on such a scale above a cemetery without disturbing graves would be practically impossible.
Much of the documented narrative surrounding this debate comes from the Daily Emerald’s extensive coverage of the university’s interest in the Pioneer Cemetery Eugene Oregon over several months.
In 1969, a bill was introduced in the Oregon Legislature that would have permitted the condemnation of the cemetery, allowing it to be absorbed by the university and built upon. This was not the first legislative attempt of its kind, and like its predecessors, this bill also failed to pass.
The alternative plans for the Pioneer Cemetery Eugene Oregon proposed by Lutes and Amundson seem to have been overshadowed by the controversy surrounding Elder’s Compromise.
One alternative to building over the cemetery involved a “relocation in kind” plan. This entailed creating an exact replica of the existing Pioneer Cemetery Eugene Oregon at a different location in Eugene and transferring the remains to the new site. This would have freed up the original land for any development projects the UO might have pursued.
Lutes and Amundson also proposed relocating the graves to a perpetual care cemetery with a more consolidated design, where a dedicated fund would cover the ongoing maintenance and upkeep of the cemetery grounds. Finally, they suggested a compression of the cemetery within its existing boundaries.
Ultimately, the fervor surrounding development on the Pioneer Cemetery Eugene Oregon subsided when the university expanded in other directions, and the cemetery was officially listed on the National Register of Historic Places, solidifying its preservation.
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Current state of Pioneer Cemetery Eugene Oregon with mature trees and grave markers ](https://eugeneweekly.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/20191031coverstory-Scan-3.jpg)
Then and Now: The University’s Evolving Landscape
Today, the University of Oregon is no longer pursuing expansion on or above the Pioneer Cemetery Eugene Oregon. However, the institution continues to grow and evolve.
In December 2018, the university unveiled its 10-year capital plan, outlining renovations of existing buildings and construction of new facilities over the coming decade.
When asked about the historical proposal to build on stilts over the Pioneer Cemetery Eugene Oregon, Michael Harwood, Associate Vice President and University Architect at the UO, admitted, “I never realized we had this bad idea.”
Regarding current university involvement with the cemetery, Harwood mentioned that a university staff member serves on the cemetery’s board, but that represents the extent of their connection.
The 10-year capital plan is “our attempt to lay out for the future our capital needs,” he explained. He described the plan as the “third link in a chain” that begins with an academic plan, followed by a space plan that assesses the future space requirements of the campus.
Harwood noted that the plan does not include many new buildings “because we think that the space we have will accommodate our growth at the moment.”
Renovations of existing buildings will prioritize accessibility for students, faculty, and staff with disabilities. Plumbing, mechanical, and electrical systems will be upgraded to “reduce energy and maintenance costs,” according to the capital plan.
Some new buildings included in the plan, such as Tykeson Hall and the Lyllye Reynolds-Parker Black Cultural Center, have already been completed and were in use during the 2019-2020 academic year.
Perhaps the most significant transformation at the UO is the development of the Phil and Penny Knight Campus for Accelerating Scientific Impact. This project has already led to the displacement of businesses along Franklin Boulevard.
The Knight Campus should not be confused with other Knight-family-supported buildings on campus, such as the Knight Library, the William K. Knight Law Center, or the Matthew Knight Arena, all of which received Knight family contributions for construction or renovation over the years.
The 160,000-square-foot first phase of the Knight Campus was projected for completion by 2020, according to the University of Oregon 10-year capital plan. Around the O describes the Knight Campus as a “$1 billion initiative aimed at integrating research, training, and entrepreneurship into a single, nimble, interdisciplinary enterprise.”
The historic Hayward Field underwent extensive construction throughout the 2018-2019 academic year, aiming for completion by spring 2020, involving even late-night work. Hayward Field serves as a prime example of historical structures being altered, even demolished, at the university due to significant financial contributions, notably from Phil Knight and other donors.
The historic East Grandstand at Hayward Field, where generations of fans watched legendary runner Steve Prefontaine, was demolished despite public opposition, local activist protests, and calls for its preservation.
According to university information, the renovated Hayward Field will feature a new nine-lane track, expanded seating, and a tower in the northeast corner housing “interpretive exhibits” and an observation deck.
The UO declined to comment further on the Hayward tower to EW, directing reporters to the university website. Eugene residents will have to await the track season to discover the precise nature of these “interpretive exhibits.”
Hayward Field will also incorporate classrooms and laboratories for the Department of Human Physiology.
Exhuming the Cemetery Dispute: A Deeper Look
Founded in 1872 by Spencer Butte Lodge No. 9 of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, the Pioneer Cemetery Eugene Oregon was formally platted in 1892. Years later, a dispute arose regarding the legitimate governing body of the Pioneer Cemetery Eugene Oregon.
According to The Eugene Pioneer Cemetery: A Historical Overview by Elizabeth Oster, Ben Dorris convened a meeting of the Odd Fellows Cemetery Association in 1954.
The Odd Fellows Lodge had owned the cemetery for many years but had not met the evolving maintenance standards required by new cemetery laws. The meeting resulted in the appointment of a new board of trustees tasked with improving cemetery upkeep.
This new board initiated a takeover and formalized articles of incorporation under the name Pioneer Memorial Park Association.
The stated mission of this new organization was “to acquire the interests in the cemetery property held by the Lodge and the Odd Fellows Cemetery Association and to operate and maintain it on a businesslike basis.”
However, suspicions arose that the association’s underlying objective was to secure property title to facilitate the cemetery’s destruction and subsequent sale of the land to the University of Oregon. Critics believed the new board was paving the way for a business transaction with the neighboring university.
In her 2012 thesis on the history of the Pioneer Cemetery Eugene Oregon, Elisabeth Kramer observes, “The relationship between the UO and the cemetery is like any association between longtime neighbors.”
Adding further complexity, in 1956, two years after the perceived coup, the Odd Fellows Cemetery Association renamed itself the Eugene Pioneer Cemetery Association. This was an attempt to disassociate from the Lodge and reclaim cemetery rights from the Pioneer Memorial Park Association.
Almost a decade later, in January 1963, the UO’s expansion aspirations encountered the adjacent Pioneer Cemetery Eugene Oregon. Local architectural firm Lutes and Amundson subsequently developed plans for the university’s potential expansion into the cemetery grounds.
Amidst this backdrop emerged “Elder’s Compromise,” named after Oregon State Representative Ed Elder. This proposal detailed Lutes and Amundson’s plan to construct buildings above the Pioneer Cemetery Eugene Oregon, aiming to achieve both university expansion and, to some extent, preservation of the historic cemetery.
A Daily Emerald article from February 14, 1963, titled “Bridge It or Build On It, But By All Means Buy It,” urged the university to acquire the land and decide its future use, advocating for Elder’s Compromise.
Another article quoted Harold Edmunds, chairman of the cemetery association, stating that the association “will give consideration to anything the university thinks practical…”
In September of the same year, the Eugene Pioneer Cemetery Association, committed to preserving the property, and the Pioneer Memorial Park Association, responsible for property ownership and maintenance, went to court. The Eugene Pioneer Cemetery Association alleged that the Pioneer Memorial Park Association had allowed the Pioneer Cemetery Eugene Oregon to become overgrown and unsightly.
Meanwhile, the Daily Emerald published another article in October concerning the cemetery controversy, reporting, “The petitions filed last month alleged that it is not the intention of the present association directors to maintain the cemetery but to make available to the state board of higher education portions for the university campus.”
This reflected the persistent suspicions that the Memorial Park group had always intended to sell the land to the university.
The legal case continued until August 1964, when the Pioneer Memorial Park Association was dismissed from court after demonstrating to a judge that it “did not have the funds to maintain the property and no means of acquiring any.”
The Pioneer Memorial Park Association was thus absolved of allegations of intentional neglect, as they simply lacked the financial resources for proper maintenance.
In 1969, the university persisted in its efforts to acquire the Pioneer Cemetery Eugene Oregon property. A bill was introduced in the Legislature seeking to condemn the cemetery, enabling its absorption into the university for development. This was yet another failed attempt, mirroring previous unsuccessful bills.
In 1970, the cemetery faced another legal challenge, stemming from similar underlying issues. Harrison R. Kincaid, a cemetery lot owner, brought a lawsuit against the Pioneer Memorial Park Association, along with University President Robert Clark and former President Arthur Fleming, seeking $200,000 in damages.
Kincaid alleged that “the Pioneer Memorial Park Association and its associates were purposely allowing the property to degenerate in conspiracy with the university so that it might be condemned and then declared open for sale and rezoning, resulting in the relocation of the burials.”
If proven true, this would have significantly simplified the university’s acquisition of the land.
In 1971, a judge ruled in favor of the defendants, as Kincaid failed to provide sufficient evidence of a conspiracy.
After 1971, the Pioneer Memorial Park Association “ceased to be active concerning the cemetery,” according to Oster’s historical overview.
Ultimately, the Pioneer Cemetery Eugene Oregon’s history took a preservationist turn. The discovery that four Medal of Honor recipients were interred within its grounds qualified it for listing on the National Register of Historic Places. This designation effectively ended any further discussions about university acquisition and development of the cemetery.
Kramer’s thesis explains that by the late 1990s, “the needs of the university had also adjusted as land was purchased to the east of campus, shifting the focus away from the cemetery.” — Asia Zeller
The Future of the University and Place Identity
Landscape architecture professor Thoren reflects that while ideas like building over the Pioneer Cemetery Eugene Oregon seemed progressive and idealistic at the time, they appear somewhat misguided in retrospect.
Time will reveal whether similar judgments will be cast on the university’s current and future development endeavors.
Thoren’s work centers on “the role that place and landscape have in reinforcing cultural identity and also helping to create cultural identity.”
“One of the things that I love about this campus is the role that the landscape plays in structuring. It has a figure, and buildings fit into that figure,” she says. “But the landscape rooms are themselves important.”
Thoren concludes, “If we begin to lose the landscape, we begin to lose part of what makes us the University of Oregon.”
