Clyde Williams Stadium?

[ceeboe]

This might make me look like an idiot, but I didn't know until I attend ISU, stayed at Helser, and played pick up games on the grass lots the the west of Helser that that is where Clyde Williams was even located. Now to go back and see dorms on it is kind of depressing.

 

[psycln11]

Lake LaVerne might actually be there (imagine where Friley would be and go across the street - that MAY look like a lake, but it's hard to tell in a B&W photo), but you're right - definitely no Union.

Lake Laverne was built in 1914-1915 or so. What's seen in the photo appears to be College Creek.

 

[psycln11]

 

[jdoggivjc]

Lake Laverne was built in 1914-1915 or so.

Well, the photo's circa 1925, so that means that Lake Laverne would be in that photo.

 

[pulse]

Here's a nice shot of the opposite side showing State & Beyer on the top, and Lincoln Way on the bottom.

Iowa State vs. Nebraska Football, 1968 on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

 

[Melvin]

WOW!!!!

Thanks for the great pix. Friley was right next to the stadium?

I use to live in Helser for 2 years. I had no idea that the old Football Stadium was that close.

Thanks for the information.

 

[alarson]

Never gonna happen. That was part of the master plan for the previous director of the DoR, but he's long gone and so is his ridiculous plan. Helser's capacity is too high, a suite building's is too low. Suites are more expensive than most people want to pay, so demand is much lower as well. Eaton is traditionally in the last 20% of the res halls to fill up for a year, and the only reason Martin isn't the same way is because they have a couple of large learning communities housed there. Besides, they completely gutted Helser in summer 2008 and redid the whole thing. It's a nice building now, and good to go for another 50-65 years.

I wasnt aware they'd gutted helser. Good, it needed it. Hopefully they made the rooms about 2x larger to match what youd get in friley, and added A\C. My first and last year there was the year they announced they were closing helser in may. I was hoping to see the wrecking ball hit it shortly after. Unfortunately it still stands.

As for the low demand in the suites, maybe if they lowered prices from the rediculous amount theyre at now, theyd have some more demand. A quick browse shows a double (i think thats 4 people in a suite) is 5272\person for 9 months. (thats the cheapest option). Multiply that times 4, and youre looking at 21088 for all 4 people, or $2343\month. All for a little room in a suite. Meanwhile, i remember i lived in a place with 3 other guys that had about 2400 square feet and was only $1200/month, and also had all the amenities of living in a house. Tack on a little bit for utils, and you're still about $1000 ahead of the suites just in one month.

 

[IcSyU]

Housing across the board is a ripoff on campus...

 

[Weez4Cy]

So are these the tracks for the "Dinkey"? Still there after all those years?

 

[trigger1]

This is a fun trip down memory lane. While I didn't get to go to a game in Clyde Williams as a college student, I did get there pre-college once or twice. When I started at ISU (lived in Helser), the old stadium was still there. You could get in and still see remants of the locker rooms, etc. There were some neat murals honoring the Sun and Liberty Bowl teams.

We used to go up in the stadium to smash pumpkins we made the freshman "obtain". Why? Because we could and we were young and stupid! That wasn't as much fun though as hiding in the shadows of the old stadium along Lincoln Way and bowling for cars with pumpkins. How nobody ever caused an accident I'll never know. Miracle I guess.

 

[ISU0454]

Good topic for a Monday morning. Went freshman year at Cyde. Lived at Storms Hall, 6th floor Coover, which is now gone. We walked to games so parking was no big deal to us. As freshman we had to go early to try and reserve seats for upperclassmen. Best memories of that year were 'body passing' - where someone would run out of the stands, grab a cheerleader, drag her over across the track, then start passing her up to the top of the east side. Soon the chant of 'turn her over...turn her over' could be heard from those in our section and others...After a while the male cheerleaders started intercepting those advances, so folks in the lower sections just resorted to latching onto some willing female prospects close to their seats - and away they went...Also during that time, it was allowed, even encouraged, to have fans come onto the field and form the 'tunnel' that the players ran through when they entered the game. This was great fun, you got to get down on the turf, cheer on the guys when they came in, etc. We had a football player who lived on our floor that year. He didn't get much playing time and always liked to try to be one of the last guys to run out onto the field through the student tunnel. By game time we were naturally pretty well lit and feeling our oats, so it was always a challange to see if we could try to tackel our buddy as he came along. After the first couple of games he was really looking for us and would lower his shoulder, sending us scrawney freshmen for a loop. Of course, it was usually his best hit of the day.

I also remember 'The Mic Men'. These were sudents that would be out on the track section by the cheerleading section. They were hooked up to a sound system and were able to assist the cheers by speaking directly to the crowd. I think K-State used to, or still does this kind of thing. Like someone said earlier - when big George Amundson was leading the boys south toward Lincoln Way and the cheer would go up 'All the way to Lincoln Way', the Mic Men and student section would change it up a bit to 'All the way to the Cave Inn'.

 

[TruClone]

I used to hear stories about that track going under the stands from my old coach. He would recall some of the fast people to ever run for ISU running on that track. I can't remember who was in the stories but nonetheless I would have loved to run on a unique track like that.

I also heard stories of training from a certain silver medalist in the 400H. Back in his day, they would train in the concourse on hilton. Can you imagine those runners training in a facility like that. I mean at that time, they had the first 4x4 team to have 3 runners run 44 something. Impressive!

I ran track in 82-83 and this is correct. We practiced in many places. We ran at the Hilton when the weather outside was terrible. The concourse was very hard and slick to run on. We also ran 200's between Beardshear and Curtiss Halls and on the road from the library past Beardshear Hall. State Gym was used for some practices also with the locker room in the basement. Not sure where they are housed now. We would also train in the State Gym pool, running in the water. Man I wish we would have had the facilities that they have now. We did win the Big 8 outdoor title in 1983.

 

[dustinal]

This might make me look like an idiot, but I didn't know until I attend ISU, stayed at Helser, and played pick up games on the grass lots the the west of Helser that that is where Clyde Williams was even located. Now to go back and see dorms on it is kind of depressing.

I was in the marching band and practiced on it every day for two years and didn't realize it was ISU's old field a while. It happens to the best of us. :wink:

 

[HOTDON]

I ran track in 82-83 and this is correct. We practiced in many places. We ran at the Hilton when the weather outside was terrible. The concourse was very hard and slick to run on. We also ran 200's between Beardshear and Curtiss Halls and on the road from the library past Beardshear Hall. State Gym was used for some practices also with the locker room in the basement. Not sure where they are housed now. We would also train in the State Gym pool, running in the water. Man I wish we would have had the facilities that they have now. We did win the Big 8 outdoor title in 1983.

That is awesome in a "Rocky tossing railroad ties and punching a side of beef" sort of way.

I'm loving this thread. I got to campus just as the UDCC and the new dorms were finished. I walked by the Clyde Williams gates almost every day for four years. I knew the staduim had been there, but I never knew anything about it. The "Honor Before Victory" plaque sticks with me. I'm glad they decided to leave the gates there despite the field being razed.

 

[redrocker]

I just had this got this picture in my office. It is a 1966 view of campus. I had it blown up to 48" x 36". You can see the addition going on the south side of Clyde Williams Stadium. Lots of other things have changed on campus too. Veenker is really neat to see the original lay out (before 13th street and Ontario connected)

 

[Cat4ISU]

does anyone have pics from State Field? That was the original field the Cyclones played on. I believe it was located on central campus by Beardshear? I saw a panoramic of an Iowa/Iowa State football game around 1905? for sale once that was played on that field.

 

[mapnerd]

Here is an online ISU service of 1930s aerials across the entire state.

ISU ortho server

 

[cyclonenum1]

I absolutely love the historical pics...thanks to all for posting. I was at ISU in the mid 80s and Clyde Williams Field was gone by then (however the track was there). When did they tear down the seating?

 

[brianhos]

Until recently I think there would have been parking north of State Gym/Beyer (pic below looking north in '68), but they still would have needed more. Tailgating would not have been as "professional", but would have engulfed the campus and surrounding neighborhood. Does anyone know when the track was removed? I went to hundreds of ISU events as a kid, but never really went around that part of campus. I can remember looking down Sheldon from Lincoln Way when it was pretty much all undeveloped.

It is arguable which location is better imo, but I think it is fair to say CW Field had better gates/fencing:

I walked past that 1,000 times in college, I never put 2 and 2 together to figure out what those gates were for.

 

[pulse]

does anyone have pics from State Field? That was the original field the Cyclones played on. I believe it was located on central campus by Beardshear? I saw a panoramic of an Iowa/Iowa State football game around 1905? for sale once that was played on that field.

This is from 1901. This is around where the library currently is.