A Gathering Place

A Gathering Place. . His given name is the Trojan Shrine, but he is best-known by his nickname: Tommy Trojan. Probably the most popular and recognizable member of the Trojan Family, he is a physical and symbolic rallying point for the entire university. , Tommy Trojan attracts people for pep rallies, political assemblies and open-air performances. Visitors invariably pose with him for photographs; students study between classes on the steps at his base; and he is a favorite rendezvous point for alumni, faculty, staff and students. , Tommy Trojan was originally conceived by then-president of the General Alumni Association, James McCoy, as a birthday gift for USC’s fiftieth anniversary. Between 1928 and 1930, the GAA raised $10,000 for the project and commissioned Los Angeles sculptor Roger Noble Burnham to create the sculpture. Several USC football players modeled for Burnham, ensuring the bronze warrior a true Trojan pedigree. Tommy was officially welcomed into the Trojan Family on June 6, 1930, when the Trojan Shrine was dedicated as part of the university's semi-centennial celebration. , While Tommy Trojan is clearly USC’s most famous campus landmark, adjacent Bovard Administration Building is a close second. The building, designed by John and Donald Parkinson, was completed in 1921 and named for USC’s fourth president, George Finley Bovard, who was also a member of the university’s first graduating class. Inside is USC’s oldest and largest auditorium, the Kenneth Norris, Jr. Auditorium. The 1600-seat hall is now one of the oldest stage facilities still operating in the Los Angeles area. Surrounding what used to be the building’s bell tower are eight statues created by sculptor Casper Gruenfeld to depict such luminaries as Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Cicero and Plato, along with John Wesley, founder of Methodism, and Bishop Matthew Simpson, Phillips Brooks and Borden R Bowne, American leaders in religious and philosophic thought. Bronze plaques in the building's arcade honor USC presidents and board chairmen since 1880, as well as philanthropist Walter Annenberg. , Across Childs Way, the Italian Romanesque-style Gwynn Wilson Student Union Building also invites people to congregate. The building, designed by Parkinson and Parkinson, was constructed in 1927-28. In 1970, it was named for a pivotal figure on campus, a man who devoted much of his life to USC, serving as student body president, athletic director, president of the General Alumni Association and life trustee.