User:Davidcpeters/draft/Williams Hall (Oklahoma State University)

Williams Hall was the first library building constructed on the campus of Oklahoma State University.

History
This facility provided offices and classrooms for several departments on campus in addition to providing space for the college library. Through the years the building would be utilized by a number of academic departments and administrative offices. With the construction of a new library in 1922 the building was renamed the Biology Building. Later it was named for long time faculty member Benjamin Franklin Williams.

Construction
Originally known as the OAMC (Oklahoma Agricultural and Mechanical College )Library the Oklahoma Territorial Legislature designated $12,000 for construction in the spring of 1899. The college board of agriculture hired Joseph P. Foucart to provide design specifications which they approved in May with minor modifications in June. This first phase of construction was completed in 1900 and a significant addition was added in 1902.