On November 13, 1910, prominent Catholics from around the country gathered here on Loyola’s campus for the laying of the cornerstone of Marquette Hall. According to the Times Picayune of November 14, the cornerstone contained the following items: A cross blessed by Pope Pius X, the names of ecclesiastical and civil authorities, the names of members of the Marquette Association, the names of benefactors and founders, the names of the members of the college faculty, the history of the Jesuit Fathers in Louisiana, the history and charter of the Marquette Association, a button signifying New Orleans as the logical point of the Panama Exposition, newspapers of the city and a letter from President Taft.
Marquette Hall Cornerstone Ceremony
This image features the visiting dignitaries performing the Cornerstone Laying Ceremony in the shadow of the construction scaffolding for Marquette Hall. The building took less than a year to build, as classes were held there in September, 1911.
Trowel Used for Laying the Marquette Hall Cornerstone
This image and the trowel are currently on display within the Centennial Exhibit in the Special Collections and Archives Reading Room on the third floor of the Monroe Library.
Found in the Archives is a recurring series of crazy cool stuff found in the Monroe Library’s Special Collections & Archives.