Classes began in the Chemistry Building in 1968 and it was officially opened the following year by Dr. W.G. Schneider (1915‐2013), renowned chemist and President of the National Research Council of Canada. The mid-century modern structure features the same board-formed concrete construction as found at Lady Eaton College and was designed by Paul Merrick (b. 1938) in collaboration with Master Planning Architect Ron Thom (1923-1986). It was originally intended to be the first structure in a greater six-building Science Complex on the university’s East Bank. Initially, a large, stepped ramp was used by students to enter the complex from the Faryon Bridge. While the allocation and outfitting of laboratory space was handled by university committees, Thom personally chose interior furnishings by Alvar Aalto (1898-1976) and Arne Jacobsen (1902-1971) whose Series 7 chair featured prominently in the lecture halls. The award-winning Environment Sciences Building (1991) and Chemical Sciences Building (2004) were later additions that now surround the original concrete structure.
