State Gym opened for the first time 100 years ago, in the spring of 1913. It opened again in the 2012 spring semester, after undergoing renovations.

“We’ve basically revived State Gym back to her old glory,” said Michael Giles, director of recreational services.

State Gym has seen a lot in the last hundred years. Though the gymnasium was originally intended to be used as such, in times past it was used as an auditorium, an armory, a dining hall and in 1918, State Gym served as a hospital during the Spanish influenza epidemic.

In 1962, a fire broke out in State Gym. Repairs were made in 1967, but that was the last time, until recently, that the gymnasium was modified. In 2009, more drastic renovations began again.

“The only thing that was left, primarily, was the infrastructure of the building,” Giles said. “Everything else – if it could be removed, it was removed.”

Today, the gym is a shining example of modern engineering.

State Gym has a platinum-level certification in Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (Leed), a certification held by only two campus recreation facilities in the nation.

“It’s a huge compliment to the university,” Giles said.

Some of the sustainable construction of the building includes the lights in the main lobby, which detect how much light is present from the Sun and dim accordingly, a rainwater recapturing system for use in toilets and green roofs with plants growing on them.

On top of new sustainability methods, the renovation of the gymnasium retained some of the heart of the original structure through recycling. The wood of the old basketball court’s original flooring was used in construction of the entry desk, the service desk, all the benches and throughout the locker rooms.

“In 1913, it was a premier facility, and so I would say today that State Gym is once again a premier facility within the country, within college universities,” Giles said.