It’s been home to thousands and thousands of students over the years, and chances are you’ve heard a story or two that starts with, “When I lived at Currier Hall….” Now, the University of Iowa’s first residence hall is celebrating 100 years of housing and developing leaders and scholars.

Currier Hall was constructed on the east side of campus a century ago to accommodate the increasing number of women enrolling at the UI. It was named after Amos Noyes Currier and his wife, Celia Moore Currier. Amos served the university as professor, librarian, liberal arts dean, and interim president during his Iowa tenure in the second half of the 19th century. Celia taught mathematics and Latin. Although her tenure at the university occurred at a time when women were not offered professorships, her contributions to the university made no less of an impact.

The Currier Hall Centennial Celebration kicked off Sunday, Nov. 9, with an ice cream social and events continue throughout the week. On Monday, Nov. 10, family members of Amos and Celia Currier, historians, artists, and former staff and residents will attend a fireside chat and share their Currier Hall memories. When it opened, Currier Hall provided housing to about 150 women. Today, it houses 618 students.

Celia Currier Parish McHenry, the great-granddaughter of Amos and Celia, will be among the Currier family members in attendance. The Iowa City resident doesn’t just live in the city where a UI residence hall honors her esteemed family members. She also worked within University Housing and Dining, the department responsible for overseeing the residence halls, for 19 years. She retired in 2001, and her ties to the UI and Currier Hall still run deep.

“It brings back all the things my mother told me about the Curriers, and I think Amos and Celia would be tickled,” says McHenry. “Even though they’re gone, their name lives on and represents what they meant to the UI. It’s quite a legacy to have so many people touched in some way by the building.”

The Currier Hall Centennial Celebration comes as work winds down on the UI’s first new residence hall to be built on campus since 1968, the Mary Louise Petersen Residence Hall, which is scheduled to open in fall 2015 and house about 500 students. The Iowa Board of Regents also recently approved the UI’s request to plan the building of another new residence hall to help address the continued growth of enrollment—the Madison Street Residence Hall.

And as students continue to make more memories at UI residence halls, new and old, McHenry says she appreciates the campus taking time to celebrate the residence hall that started it all.

“It’s all so amazing,” says McHenry. “Here’s to 100 more years.”