These Are All Photographs Of Gustavus Adolphus College

USE YOUR BACK BUTTON TO RETURN TO THIS PAGE AFTER VIEWING PICTURES Pic1: A view of Gustavus Adolphus College (GAC). The small yellow house towards the right of the picture is what remains of the "Sweedish House." This house had a conical shaped roof on it which is now gone. In the forefront, you can see the remenants of the fence that enclosed some tennis courts. Pic2: Another view of GAC taken from the intersection of College and Washington Avenues. Those who have seen this view before will recognize what is missing. For those who have not, (to give you an idea), the only thing visible from this angle used to the the clock tower (white part) of Old Main building (in the back). The rest was covered with trees.... Pic3: This picture is taken from College Ave and 7th Street, just before you enter the GAC campus. Once again, only the clock tower (white part) could be seen on Old Main (bldg on right). The white bldg on the left is Christ Chapel which once had a beautiful steeple which was broken in half and had to be removed. The trees in front which are now missing once hid the chapel from view. Pic4: Looking down S. 7th Street. The red house in the middle was the Holly House and the yellow one in the far back was the Sweedish House. Both housed students and as of 4/9/98 have been torn down. Pic5: Looking NW from GAC entrance. The tennis courts beyond the barriers were badly damaged. Pic6: Looking NW from GAC entrance again. The bldg is Uhler Hall dorm, which was damaged too. You can see the scores of alumni and parent volunteers that showed up to help with the cleanup. Pic7: Another picture from the entrance. Old Main is in the background and Rundstrom Hall dorm on the left. The entire landscape was once filled with trees. Pic8: Shows the chapel (white bldg in middle) with the steeple missing and Johnson Hall dorm (on right). As of 4/9/98 officials are deciding whether this bldg which was badly damaged will be razed. Pic9: Looking NE at the college from Jefferson Avenue. At one time, a line of trees (some still visible) used to line the entire field from R to L blocking the view of campus till you came upon it. Pic10: Looking SW at the Winchester Apts on Jefferson Avenue. These apts. housed GAC students. This bldg was one of the first to be hit by the tornadoes. Pic11: A view from behind the Winchester Apts on Jefferson Ave. (Pic10), looking towards GAC. The view is the path the tornado took towards GAC and town. Pic12: Looking NW towards GAC. You can see the fences that surrounded the tennis courts damaged. On the far right is the Sweedish house which had a conical roof on it which is missing. Pic13: A view of Minnesota Square Park in downtown St. Peter taken from US Highway 169. The areas marked are: 1) GAC Chapel with the steeple missing. 2)Old Main bldg with the clock tower 3)Uhler dorm and 4)North, Link & Sorenson dorms (Complex). Other than the steeple on the chapel, you could not see anything on campus. A lot of the trees at the park are missing. Amazing the gazebo still stands. Pic14: GAC's Sweedish House which housed students (y'remember... the yellow house I have writing about above...) Well, it used to have a conical shaped roof which is missing. This house was razed as of April 9, 98. Pic15: Another view of Old Main from College Avenue. It is hard to believe that only the clock tower could be seen at one time. Pic16: The famous college sign that greeted visitors from College Ave. was torn from its stone setting and now just lay leaning against what was left of the mount setting. Pic17: This view of college gives you an idea of all the trees that were uprooted. You can see areas of the grass where they once were. Pic18a, Pic18b, Pic18c: These are pictures of what was left of the college's fairly recently built Swanson Tennis Center dome (a bubble-dome like many indoor sports complexes) that housed many tennis courts. The white stuff on the sides of the bldg is the material used for the dome. In Pic18a, the St. Peter water tower still stands on the right. Pic18c was taken two weeks after the tornado - the trees have been cleared but the dome material still remains on the ground. Pic19: Luckily, the college was closed for Spring Break. Unluckily, all students that left their cars on campus were told to park them in this parking lot. I believe all cars were damaged in one way or another. Pic20: Another view that shows damaged cars in the lot. Picture also shows cars thrown against one another. [ Tornado Home | My Home ]