george snell

In the spirit of celebrating our beloved Snell Library and its 20 years on campus, I thought it might be interesting to see just what our college did without this iconic study center. Believe it or not, all of the books and print resources Northeastern had prior to Snell’s creation (think late 1980’s) were stored in the basement of Dodge Hall! (and you thought things got crowded during finals week here…) Given the less than workable conditions in Dodge and the growing student body, the University contracted a design for a new library to be built through The Architect’s Collaborative. The building was opened in 1990, and cost $35 million dollars to create. The library was named after George and Lorraine Snell, for their philanthropic leadership and contributions to the Northeastern learning community. George Snell graduated from Northeastern in 1941 with a degree in Mechanical Engineering, and became a supporter of the University in 1970. He passed away in December of 1997, and his wife Lorraine continues to stay involved with the Northeastern University Libraries. On Monday we will gather to celebrate the birthday of Snell Library, and honor the two decades of its service to the students of Northeastern. I encourage you all to join us in celebration with birthday cake and refreshments!