Moon Rocks at UCSB
Oct. 9, 1969

Preston Cloud, a biogeology professor at UCSB, received one of 142 NASA research grants to examine lunar rocks.

Cloud received 7.1 grams of powdery, black “dust,” three transparent slices of broken and re-cemented rock called breccia, and later received other chips of rock.

Preliminary studies have shown that the moon was never part of the earth, indicating that it might be a sister planet rather than a moon. The studies also indicate that the existence of life on the moon is unlikely. Cloud said the possibility of finding any evidence of life was one in a billion, but that he would check for traces of life anyway.

Research on the moon rock was done at the newly completed Biogeology Clean Laboratory at UCSB. The site will be used to study lunar and Martian samples.

The samples were obtained in Earth’s first lunar landing, completed by American Apollo 11 astronauts.

Birth of the Events Center
Oct. 3, 1979

Chancellor Robert Huttenback led a ribbon-cutting ceremony yesterday morning marking the opening of UCSB’s Events Center.

A crowd of approximately 50 people attended the ceremony where Huttenback announced that the events facility has now been given the “highly original” name of the “Events Center.” The chancellor added that since it was “by and large built with student money,” students would have priority for its use.

Following the opening ceremony, tours of the Ecen were given to attendees. The new facility includes four basketball courts, a center court for intercollegiate play, locker rooms and the Founder’s Room – a bar and gathering place that will also be used for lectures.

The seats both downstairs and upstairs fold to accommodate the courts. There are 5700 bleacher seats which will be more comfortable than those in Rob Gym because they have backrests.

The facility is geared toward intramural sports and P.A. classes. Lockers in the building, however, are for players only. The ECen is now open for drop-in or intramural games.

From Humble Beginnings
Oct. 9, 1995

Party on campus.

There was a celebration on campus today marking UCSB’s 50th birthday.

What we now call UCSB opened in 1909 as the Anna S.C. Blake Training School, an all-female home economics school, located in a Victorian house in downtown Santa Barbara.

The school later became the Santa Barbara Normal School of Manual Arts and Home Economics, and relocated in 1913 to the Riviera, just east of the Old Mission at the foot of the Santa Ynez mountains. The school also changed its curriculum to training school teachers.

In 1921, the school became a four-year liberal arts college known as Santa Barbara State Teachers’ College, which was able to establish its first bachelor’s degree program. It was later renamed Santa Barbara State College. In 1941, the campus again relocated to the Leadbetter Mesa.

When the U.S. entered World War II, the college temporarily shut down. It reopened on July 1, 1944 as the University of California, Santa Barbara College. The university moved to its current location in 1958, where it changed its name to University of California, Santa Barbara.

– Compiled by Stephanie Tavares and Cameron Balakhanpour