University of New Mexico

Search

Table of Contents

Tours

1. Historic Tree Tour Route A

   Stops

   1. White Mulberry

      Common Name: White Mulberry

      Botanic Name: Morus alba

       

      The Humanities Building was demolished in 2025 to make way for a new building at the site. The demolished building was designed by W.C. Kruger and Associates, who were influenced by the Cold War for the building's bunker-like form. This defensive-seeming form related to broader architectural trends of the era, but has some local roots as well. Looking at pictures of the Humanities Building, one may not immediately guess the architect’s subtle attempt to imitate the Ancestral Puebloan architecture of the Southwest. However, according to Dodge (2006), this was Kruger’s intent when designing the building. In an era when fear and paranoia pervaded daily life, safety and a controlled environment were remedies for constant worry. This was true for the Ancestral Puebloans, whose homes took a form based on their own safety concerns. Their large housing complexes, like Pueblo Bonito in northwestern New Mexico, were an amalgamation of several homes stacked one on top of another in a fortified complex meant to slow down or repel invaders. These Pueblo complexes had small openings and massive walls that represented the Puebloan strategy for creating defensive dwellings. Kruger drew from this precedent in designing in a different era of fear. Similar to the Pueblos, the Humanities Building conveyed safety with minimal glazing and massive concrete walls fronting each protrusion of the building. The stacked nature of the cubic masses also justified the Pueblo analogy. In addition, Kruger covered the building’s concrete forms with stucco to imitate the “Southwestern” style that the rest of UNM’s campus embodies. In these ways, the Humanities Building attempted to relate to its local and regional contexts, as well as the international context in which it arose.

       

      References:

      William A. Dodge, “The University of New Mexico: A Historical Narrative,” in Campus Heritage Preservation Survey: University of New Mexico (Albuquerque: University of New Mexico, December 2006).

      Samuel Strasser, “Humanities Building, University of New Mexico,” (2015), https://albuquerquemodernism.unm.edu/posts/cs11_humanities_building_unm.html

       

   2. London Plane Tree

      Common Name: London Plane Tree

      Botanic Name: Platanus x acerifolia

       

      Yale Mall was once Yale Boulevard, a major north-south thoroughfare through campus. The 1946 Campus Plan by John Gaw Meem refers to the street as "Villagra Avenue." The mall was developed in three different stages: (1) the north end of the mall was designed around the preexisting "Center of the Universe"; (2) the center portion marks the intersection of Yale Mall and the pedestrian way that connects with Cornell Mall to the east—marked by a fountain called "Tribute to Mother Earth" with obelisks designed by Youn Ja Johnson; (3) the south end of Yale Mall distinguished by a large, wooden portal with Spanish-Pueblo Revival detailing. Mature London Plane trees line the mall from the portal north to the fountain. Construction began in the 1980s and extended through the mid 1990s (REF). As seen here in 1964, Yale Blvd. extended into campus. The archival photo from 1995 shows the recent transformation that occurred converting the roadway into a pedestrian mall.

       

      Reference:

      Terry Gugliotta, PI, “Campus Heritage Preservation Survey: The University of New Mexico,” (December 2006), https://historicpreservation.unm.edu/preservation-plan/historic-preservation-plan.pdf

       

   3. Ponderosa Pine

      Common Name: Ponderosa Pine

      Botanic Name: Pinus ponderosa

       

      Parsons Grove, located between Sara Raynolds Hall and the Communication and Journalism Building, is a naturalistic landscape in the Romantic tradition. The original planting plan was designed by the firm of Gaastra, Gladding, and Johnson, the architects for the nearby Monte Vista Elementary School. Judge C.M. Botts provided the funding for the grove as a gift to the University in Josephine Parsons’ name, who was an early UNM Financial Secretary who served The University for 34 starting in 1894. The Journalism building features classic design elements of a phase of Spanish-Pueblo Revival style that predates World War II. It was built in response to the need for additional classroom and office space following the post-WWII increase in the student population. It was sited at the corner of Central and Yale and was a “gateway” building for the campus. It now anchors the southern end of the Yale Mall Heritage Zone. The structure’s west side has been substantially modified by a 1963 addition that provided 1,800 square feet of new space, and a 1991 roof-deck enclosure that provided more offices.

       

      Reference:

      Terry Gugliotta, PI, “Campus Heritage Preservation Survey: The University of New Mexico,” (December 2006), https://historicpreservation.unm.edu/preservation-plan/historic-preservation-plan.pdf

   4. Rocky Mountain Juniper

      Common Name: Rocky Mountain Juniper

      Botanic Name: Juniperus scopulorum

       

      Parsons Grove, located between Sara Raynolds Hall and the Communication and Journalism Building, is a naturalistic landscape in the Romantic tradition. The original planting plan was designed by the firm of Gaastra, Gladding, and Johnson, the architects for the nearby Monte Vista Elementary School. Judge C.M. Botts provided the funding for the grove as a gift to the University in Josephine Parsons’ name, who was an early UNM Financial Secretary who served The University for 34 starting in 1894. The Journalism building features classic design elements of a phase of Spanish-Pueblo Revival style that predates World War II. It was built in response to the need for additional classroom and office space following the post-WWII increase in the student population. It was sited at the corner of Central and Yale, and was a “gateway” building for the campus. It now anchors the southern end of the Yale Mall Heritage Zone. The structure’s west side has been substantially modified by a 1963 addition that provided 1,800 square feet of new space, and a 1991 roof deck enclosure that provided more offices.

       

      Reference:

      Terry Gugliotta, PI, “Campus Heritage Preservation Survey: The University of New Mexico,” (December 2006), https://historicpreservation.unm.edu/preservation-plan/historic-preservation-plan.pdf

       

   5. Siberian Elm

      Common Name: Siberian Elm

      Botanic Name: Ulmus pumila

       

      Parsons Grove, located between Sara Raynolds Hall and the Communication and Journalism Building, is a naturalistic landscape in the Romantic tradition. The original planting plan was designed by the firm of Gaastra, Gladding, and Johnson, the architects for the nearby Monte Vista Elementary School. Judge C.M. Botts provided the funding for the grove as a gift to the University in Josephine Parsons’ name, who was an early UNM Financial Secretary who served The University for 34 starting in 1894. The Journalism building features classic design elements of a phase of Spanish-Pueblo Revival style that predates World War II. It was built in response to the need for additional classroom and office space following the post-WWII increase in the student population. It was sited at the corner of Central and Yale, and was a “gateway” building for the campus. It now anchors the southern end of the Yale Mall Heritage Zone. The structure’s west side has been substantially modified by a 1963 addition that provided 1,800 square feet of new space, and a 1991 roof deck enclosure that provided more offices.

       

      Reference:

      Terry Gugliotta, PI, “Campus Heritage Preservation Survey: The University of New Mexico,” (December 2006), https://historicpreservation.unm.edu/preservation-plan/historic-preservation-plan.pdf

       

   6. Ponderosa Pine

      Common Name: Ponderosa Pine

      Botanic Name: Pinus ponderosa

       

      Prior to the construction of Sara Raynolds Hall in 1920, the Home Economics Department functioned in two cramped rooms in the basement of Hodgin Hall. Finally convinced that new facilities were necessary, the administration directed Professor Arno Leupold and architect Edward B. Christy to design a new building for the program. The building was located east of Hodgin Hall facing Terrace Street and is one of the campus’s oldest remaining buildings. Sara Raynolds Hall is an eclectic variation of the Spanish-Pueblo revival style influenced by stylized Mayan detailing reminiscent of the campus plans proposed by Walter Burley Griffin in 1915, and Francis Barry Byrne’s Chemistry Building designed in 1917. Subsequent building renovations have retained virtually all the building's architectural integrity. The expansion of the Home Economics program in the early 1920s helped increase the number of women attending UNM. Sara Raynolds Hall is surrounded by Parsons Grove, named after early UNM Financial Secretary Josephine Parsons, who served for 34 years starting in 1894.

       

      The landscape includes several dozen evergreens including the largest cedar on campus. Parsons Grove was planted starting in 1928, so the trees and their canopy are closer to 95 years old. There looks to be five remaining centenary Ponderosa Pines in front of the building and a few on the west side. The Grove is 2.3 acres, spreading from Central Avenue to Redondo, to the east of the also historic Communications & Journalism Building.

       

      References:

      Terry Gugliotta, PI, “Campus Heritage Preservation Survey: The University of New Mexico,” (December 2006), https://historicpreservation.unm.edu/preservation-plan/historic-preservation-plan.pdf

      Metro ABQ Newsletter, “Walking UNM,” (February 5, 2024), https://medium.com/@MetroABQ/walking-unm-2e391ec722ad

   7. Boxelder

      Common Name: Boxelder

      Botanic Name: Acer negundo

       

      The Art Annex building originally served as the University library. It was built on the site of UNM's first science building, Hadley Hall, which was destroyed by fire in 1910. The firm of Trost & Trost of El Paso was hired to design the library and the Albuquerque architect, Elson H. Norris, was hired as the local firm to oversee the design process. The building’s style is representative of a period when campus architecture was influenced by the designs of Walter Burley Griffin and Francis Barry Byrnes. Its experimental stylistic dialogue that includes features of Modernism, Mayan, Spanish-Pueblo Revival, and Beaux-Arts, can be seen in other buildings of this period, such as the Chemistry building and Sara Raynolds Hall. The building’s horizontal parapet is similar to the clean, modernist roofline of the Chemistry building that also reflects features of Mayan architecture, while its plan and massing follow the formal principles of the Beaux-Arts architectural school. The building served the University’s only library until 1938, when Zimmerman Library opened on the other side of campus. In 1938-39, John Gaw Meem was hired to convert the old library into a fine arts center. Works Progress Administration (WPA) funds financed the remodel. The original open floor plan of the ground floor was converted into classroom and studio space. In 1984-85, the building was again remodeled as the Art Annex, providing studio space for fine arts graduate students. The integrity of the original library interior has been compromised, but a few ornamental details remain. The building’s exterior remains virtually unaltered from its original 1926 design.

       

      Reference:

      Terry Gugliotta, PI, “Campus Heritage Preservation Survey: The University of New Mexico,” (December 2006), https://historicpreservation.unm.edu/preservation-plan/historic-preservation-plan.pdf

       

   8. Rocky Mountain Juniper

      Common Name: Rocky Mountain Juniper 

      Botanic Name: Juniperus scopulorum 

       

      The Rocky Mountain juniper is highlighted in this 1926 image of Hodgin Hall, taken from in front of the then-new library building. Built in 1926, the building was designed by Trost & Trost and Elson H. Norris and features a Mayan-influenced hybrid form of Pueblo Revival architecture. It was listed in the New Mexico State Register of Cultural Properties in 1975 and the National Register of Historic Places in 1988.  

       

      The university's library collection was originally housed in Hodgin Hall but had outgrown that space by the 1920s. A new, dedicated library building was constructed on the site of Hadley Hall, an earlier university building that burned down in 1910. The new library was designed by the El Paso firm of Trost & Trost in collaboration with local architect Elson H. Norris and was completed in 1926 at a cost of $42,000. However, the library collection continued to grow rapidly and exceeded the building's capacity after only a few years. In 1938, the new, much larger Zimmerman Library was completed, and the old library was remodeled into classroom and studio space using Works Progress Administration (WPA) funding. The building was remodeled again in 1984-85 and currently houses graduate studios for Master of Fine Arts candidates in painting, photography, printmaking, and experimental art and technology (Wikipedia, n.d.) 

       

      Reference: 

      Wikipedia, n.d., “Art Annex,” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_Annex  

   9. Western Catalpa

      Common Name: Western Catalpa

      Botanic Name: Catalpa speciosa

       

      Being alone on the wind-swept prairie subjected Hodgin Hall to the full force of considerable wind loads. After a few years, the structure began to show that the upper walls could not withstand the lateral thrust of the pitched roofs. By 1908, it was clear that corrections had to be made. President William George Tight, who came to UNM in 1901, was enamored with Southwestern architectural styles being made popular by the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway. The necessary remodeling of Hodgin Hall gave him the opportunity to make a bold statement about the cultural uniqueness of the University of New Mexico and set the architectural theme of the campus, the Spanish Pueblo Revival style, for future decades. This action was a declaration of architectural independence from the prevalent styles of the Midwest and East Coast.

       

      Reference:

      Edith Cherry and James See, “UNM Central Campus” in The Guide to New Mexico Architecture, (August 2021), https://nmarchitectureguide.org/2021/08/06/unm-central-campus/

       

   10. Honey Locust

       Common Name: Honey Locust

       Botanic Name: Gleditsia triacanthos

        

       The original Hodgin Hall, the first building on the UNM campus, was designed in the style used by many campuses in the Midwest and the East: Richardsonian Romanesque. Large entry arches, complex pitched roofs, and arched windows were some of the characteristics of that style. Rather than being built of masonry as were many of those campus buildings, Hodgin Hall was built of a more affordable material – brick. Yet, its image was intended to be on a par with colleges elsewhere.

        

       Reference:

       Edith Cherry and James See, “UNM Central Campus” in The Guide to New Mexico Architecture, (August 2021), https://nmarchitectureguide.org/2021/08/06/unm-central-campus/

        

   11. Ponderosa Pine

       Common Name: Ponderosa Pine

       Botanic Name: Pinus ponderosa

        

       In 1905, UNM President William G. Tight, faculty, and students began planting Tight Grove at what is now the northeast corner of Central Avenue and University Boulevard. Tight believed that a beautiful campus would foster a better academic environment, and he formed the Campus Improvement League to accomplish his vision. Tight’s vision was based on English Romantic tradition, which called for a planned landscape that appeared to be natural and informal like the English countryside. In the case of Tight Grove, the rolling ground surface and the informal placement of trees accomplished this vision.

        

       Annually, on Arbor Day, Tight, faculty, and male students would bring trees from the Sandias and plant them on campus. While the men worked, the female students prepared food for an afternoon picnic. The predominance of deciduous trees in the southeast portion and evergreens in the northwest portion provides a variety that one would find in many natural landscapes. Fairly recent additions to Tight Grove include the sculpture of the University mascot, the Lobo, a ground-level light fixture that illuminates the sculpture, and a ground-mounted sign of the University surrounded by a flower garden. Today, the view of Tight Grove from the busy intersection of Central and University signals to students and visitors that a landscaped oasis lies within the boundaries of the UNM Main Campus. It promises a place where pedestrian traffic is more important than vehicles, and where noise levels are reduced for solitude and contemplation.

        

       Reference:

       Terry Gugliotta, PI, “Campus Heritage Preservation Survey: The University of New Mexico,” (December 2006), https://historicpreservation.unm.edu/preservation-plan/historic-preservation-plan.pdf

        

   12. Ginkgo

       Common Name: Ginkgo

       Botanic Name: Ginkgo biloba

        

       The ginkgo trees depicted in the archival image and the ginkgo trees you see in front of you are a nod to the history of UNM and the symbolism of trees. Historically, and across numerous cultures, ginkgo trees symbolize wisdom and knowledge. The 2018 renovation of the Farris Engineering Center replaced the Brutalist architecture of the 1967 Marshall E. Farris Engineering Center designed by architect Max Flatow.

        

   13. Fremont's Cottonwood

       Common Name: Fremont’s Cottonwood

       Botanic Name: Populus fremontii

        

       As described by Cherry and See (2021): "Logan Hall (completed 1972) was not an architectural game-changer on UNM’s central campus, since no other buildings followed in the Brutalism style. However, as with the College of Education complex, its design attempted to pay respect to the historic campus style with a contemporary approach. Two design elements are used to this end: the brown color of the walls and the use of a surrounding portál. Both are familiar Spanish architectural components. The portál is supported with fluted, bush-hammered, exposed concrete columns, adhering to Brutalism’s favored use of exposed concrete."

        

       Reference:

       Edith Cherry and James See, “UNM Central Campus” in The Guide to New Mexico Architecture, (August 2021), https://nmarchitectureguide.org/2021/08/06/unm-central-campus/

   14. Fremont's Cottonwood

       Common Name: Fremont’s Cottonwood

       Botanic Name: Populus fremontii

        

       Centennial Science and Engineering Library is located underground and was constructed as part of the larger engineering complex built during the mid-1980s. The historic 1917 Chemistry Building was renovated to accommodate an engineering computer pod.

        

   15. Fremont's Cottonwood

       Common Name: Fremont’s Cottonwood

       Botanic Name: Populus fremontii

        

       Although built in 1948, the Biology Annex building represents a design carried over from an architectural phase first developed two decades earlier. Facing a post-war student population boom and shortage of classroom space, this building (originally the Pharmacy Building) was the first major building constructed following the war. It was sited along the east side of Terrace Street and is now the southernmost historic building on the Terrace Mall Heritage Zone. The exterior appearance has basically remained unchanged since its completion.

        

       Reference:

       Terry Gugliotta, PI, “Campus Heritage Preservation Survey: The University of New Mexico,” (December 2006), https://historicpreservation.unm.edu/preservation-plan/historic-preservation-plan.pdf

        

   16. Honey Locust

       Common Name: Honey Locust

       Botanic Name: Gleditsia triacanthos

        

       John Gaw Meem designed this building along the west side of Terrace Street for the State Health Laboratory. The building continues Meem’s interpretation of the Spanish-Pueblo Revival style in this part of the campus, which was developed in the mid-1930s. When a new health facility was completed on the North Campus in the 1970s, the building was renovated and remodeled for use by the Anthropology Department and the Office of Contract Archaeology. The exterior renovations were minor and the building looks almost exactly as it did upon completion in 1937.

        

       Reference:

       Terry Gugliotta, PI, “Campus Heritage Preservation Survey: The University of New Mexico,” (December 2006), https://historicpreservation.unm.edu/preservation-plan/historic-preservation-plan.pdf

        

   17. Siberian Elm

       Common Name: Siberian Elm

       Botanic Name: Ulmus pumila

        

       The Anthropology Annex was remodeled in 1982 for archaeology faculty and the Office of Contract Archaeology, which was founded in 1973 as a semi-autonomous unit of the Department and is now a research division of Maxwell Museum. The Hibben Center for Archaeological Research, with collections, curation and classroom space, opened in 2002, thanks to a major donation from archaeologist, former museum director, and long-time UNM faculty member Frank C. Hibben. The National Park Service’s Chaco Culture National Historical Park Museum opened in the Hibben Center in 2007.

        

       Reference:

       University of New Mexico, Anthropology, Department History (n.d.), https://anthropology.unm.edu/about-us/history.html

        

   18. London Plane Tree

       Common Name: London Plane Tree

       Botanic Name: Platanus x acerifolia

        

       Throughout the 1970s, progressive and sometimes controversial modern architecture was added to the space under the context of design called Regional Modernism/Contemporary, also sharing characteristics of Brutalism. The Faculty Office and Classrooms, later known as Ortega Hall, was completed near Central Campus in 1971 by the architectural firm Ferguson, Stevens, Mallory, and Pearl. The original design had elements of brick as a palette, with a second-level deck that overhung the first floor, giving the illusion of a floating mass. While this was a defining element of many modern designs of the time, it was not within the standards that had been set forth within the Pueblo Revival and Regionalism style. Ultimately, the plan submitted by George Clayton Pearl had to be reworked so that precast concrete panels were added around the bottom floor of the building to better align with the regional design elements and massing, echoing the thick adobe walls of the Pueblo Revival style. The addition of these panels was said to create unpleasantly dark spaces in the hallways and destroyed the design concept.

        

       Reference:

       Kristen Madden, “Regional Modernism in the Evolution of Educational Design at UNM,” (December 6, 2021), https://docomomo-us.org/news/regional-modernism-in-the-evolution-of-educational-design-at-unm