Page 50 - Demo

Construction started in 1831 by John Peterson and John McCormick for what became the Wabash House. John Lahr bought it in 1848 and greatly expanded it in 1861 into the four-story, 100-room Lahr Hotel, also known as Lahr House. Guests have included U.S. Grant and Mark Twain. Renovated into apartments in 1998.George O. Hayes, a member of Purdue%u2019s Class of 1912, first proposed the idea of a student union, but ground wasn%u2019t broken until 1922. The Purdue Memorial Union building opened in 1924, although the 250-room Union Club Hotel wasn%u2019t completed until 1929. The building was erected as a memorial to the Purdue students who had fought in World War I. The hotel is located at its eastern end.