Flashback
30 years ago this week
Baird Point dedicated
Baird Point on Lake LaSalle was dedicated on Sept. 10, 1978, nearly two decades after the massive Ionic columns were given to the university. Before these graceful columns became symbolic of UB’s North Campus they were on the South Campus, unassembled and subject to vandalism. Cameron Baird, chair of the Department of Music, was instrumental in bringing the columns, part of the old Buffalo Federal Reserve Bank building at Main and Swan streets, to UB when the bank building was being demolished in 1959. Baird, who wanted to see the columns used in the construction of a Greek amphitheater on campus, died in 1960. Although several designs for an outdoor theater on the South Campus were put forward, nothing materialized.
It was not until 1977, with funding provided by the Baird Foundation and the Cameron Baird Foundation, that Baird’s dream was realized. The marble columns, weighing a combined total of 80 tons, were moved to the North Campus and made the centerpiece of Baird Point. Lake LaSalle was lowered by several feet and posts were placed in the ground to support the 3,400-square-foot floor area. Three columns were reassembled, with sections of the remaining columns arranged informally.
Dedicated as a memorial to servicemen and women, the site continues to be used for a variety of educational, social and cultural activities. Baird Point has achieved its design objectives—a landmark, a performance space and a place for relaxation.
—John Edens, University Archives
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