Historical Stanford: A Guide

Time has erased the memory of grand Stanford events such as the Flatcar Prank, which involved hundreds of members of the Pioneer Classes, and the annual Senior vs. Faculty baseball games.   Landmarks like the ‘95 oak, the chimney, the camp, and old Roble Hall no longer exist.  But the truly wonderful thing is that even though this book describes scenes that took place over one hundred years ago, many of the sites described are still there, to be seen and touched: the Quad is there in all its glory---the arches, arcades, circles of palm trees, now grown many feet high; the site of the original chapel; entrances to the original library, to the original administrative offices.  Encina Hall lingers, not for freshman, but still occupied.  Go inside the lobby and see the “pesky” step that many a Roble Hall lady tripped over.  Off Mayfield Road, Escondite Cottage still functions, now Escondido, but the exterior, original porches and windows still exist, and it is easy to imagine the Jordan brood playing under the shade of a nearby oak tree.