Stanford University, Palo Alto

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Leland Stanford Junior University, is commonly known as Stanford University or just Stanford. It was founded in 1885 by the former governor of California Leland Stanford in memory of his son who had recently died of typhoid. The university opened in 1891 with 15 professors and 559 students including future president Herbert Hoover. Today Stanford's enrollment is 6,700 undergraduates and 8,000 graduate students.

Campus landmarks that we visited on our short trip include the Main Quad, Memorial Church, Green Library, and the Hoover Tower. The Main Quad is one of the few remaining structures from the original university construction not destroyed by the 1906 or 1989 earthquakes. Memorial Church is the most impressive building on campus with its stained glass and huge mosaics. The original building of the Green Library was built in 1910 and is known as the comical name of the Bing Wing. Hoover Tower stands 285 feet tall, is part of the Hoover Institution on War, Revolution and Peace, and was completed in 1941, a reproduction of the cathedral tower at Salamanca.

Other famous buildings on campus include the Cantor Center for Visual Arts and art gallery, the Stanford Mausoleum and the Angel of Grief, the Rodin sculpture garden, the Papua New Guinea Sculpture Garden, the Arizona Cactus Garden, the Stanford University Arboretum, Frank Lloyd Wright's 1937 Hanna-Honeycomb House, and the 1919 Lou Henry and Herbert Hoover House.

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Hoover Tower is located on Stanford's Campus, next to the Main Quad and the Green Library. It was built in 1941 The tower is part of the Hoover Institution on War, Revolution and Peace, begun by former President Herbert Hoover in 1919.

During the academic term, the tower is open for visits to the Observation Deck. It costs $2 to go up and enjoy the view.

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Stanford University is known as a challenging and prominent research university. The school is well known for a challenging curriculum and strong research base. It's research focuses on the sciences and it's location in Silicon Valley makes it a strong player in the field of technological advancement (the founder of Google is a graduate). The student body includes nearly 7,000 undergraduates and approximately 8,000 graduate students.

Stanford was opened in 1885 by Senator Leland Stanford and his wife. It is said that Senator Stanford offered to build the school in nearby Menlo Park, but the town refused to close down its many raucous saloons.

Today, the school boasts a beautiful campus filled with art and interesting architecture. Currently, the school houses the largest collection of sculptures by Auguste Rodin than anywhere in North America. For those less interested in academics, Stanford's football team (Stanford Cardinal) is a member of the NCAA Pac-10 Conference. The school also hosts an annual US Open Tennis tournament.

The school is located off Hwy 82/El Camino Real. Parking is free on weekends but permits are required during the week. Metered parking is available in the circle at the Main Quad.

If you are interested in visiting locations of higher education, Palo Alto is definitely the de facto old school college campus in the United States. Not only is Stanford one of the best universities in the country, but its landscape and architecture is overwhelming.

Palm Drive, the Clark Center, Stanford Stadium, Hoover Tower, and the Old Union Building are all locations that you will enjoy looking at!

Have a great time and enjoy!

The Stanford campus is huge & so beautiful! I drove around, found visitor`s parking & parked, then wandered around. I`ve visited a lot of college campuses & this one by far is the most beautiful. And it`s not just the weather either. Sprawling lawns, open space, unique architecture that seems European to me, & courtyards.
This is definitely a campus to visit.