As the community emerged from the shock after the 1966 tornado, the recovery process began. Repairs commenced. The dome was returned to cover the observatory, mangled trees were trimmed, and classes resumed in the fall with the assistance of temporary trailers (top photo). Noticeably missing in the picture is Rice Hall, which used to be just south of Stoffer.
The second photo shows Stoffer Hall in the spring of 1967, when the trees were beginning to recover. The greenhouse currently located by the southern entry was constructed at a later date. MacVicar Chapel, previously located to the west of Stoffer Hall, is conspicuously absent, having been destroyed by the tornado along with Rice Hall.
In the lower picture is a winter view of Stoffer Hall from the west with the city as a backdrop. Little evidence remains of the devastation visited upon the campus by the tornado. Today, the U-shaped parking lot and Bennett Hall are located in the area near where MacVicar chapel used to stand. And forty years later, the three small pine trees planted near the west entry of Stoffer after the tornado are now grown tall.
photos courtesy of Mabee Library Archives
