History of the Big Red Barn

When the Big Red Barn (the Barn) was constructed in 1874, it was unlikely anyone knew how integral it would become to life at Cornell, particularly for graduate and professional students. At that time, its sole function was to serve as President Andrew Dickson White’s carriage house and stable.

The Barn saw many transformations in its 144-year history, from a shelter for large animals to a cafeteria, an alumni center to a storage facility. It was not until much later that the Barn became the Graduate and Professional Student Center.

Before the Barn housed a student center, graduate and professional students gathered in a residence lounge in Sage Hall, which they called “The Henry” for its namesake, Henry Sage. Here students began the Cornell graduate student tradition Tell Grads It’s Friday (TGIF), a happy hour on Friday nights, then with free beer.

A steering committee, which included former graduate student managers of The Henry, recommended the Barn he repurposed into a student center. After a few years, the administration was convinced, and the Barn was renovated for this purpose.

The successful shift from the Henry to the Big Red Barn allowed for the first Big Red Barn manager to host events and transform the space into a true center for the graduate and professional student community. The Barn has hosted more than 200 events several years in its history.

The next Big Red Barn manager began the Big Red Barn Fellows program in 2000. Big Red Barn Fellows were hired to plan events with a focus on socializing, art and music, culture, and family. Through the Fellows, options for student engagement have become more plentiful and varied, as this program continues today.

From TGIF to trivia to write-ins, the Barn offers events targeted solely for the graduate and professional student community. Here students can relax, socialize, or work uninterrupted without getting course-related questions from undergraduates they TA.

Throughout its time as the Graduate and Professional Student Center, the Barn has left its mark on many. In fact, when not filled with students, the Big Red Barn occasionally functions as a venue for wedding ceremonies and receptions, including for several couples who met at the Barn and later chose to marry there.

The Barn continues to provide new offerings for graduate and professional students to study, eat, write, and socialize on central campus today.

For more information on the history of the Big Red Barn, see Ronald E. Ostman and Harry Little’s Cornell Then and Now (McBooks Press, Inc., 2003).