A photo of a three-story brick building on a college campus.
The Ferguson Social Sciences Building, the oldest structure on the ETAMU campus, turns 100 today. | Photo by Jason Connel, East Texas A&M Marketing and Communications

Historic Ferguson Building at ETAMU Celebrates 100 Years

East Texas A&M University is home to many historic structures, but none can rival the legacy of the Ferguson Social Sciences Building, which celebrates its 100-year anniversary today, Jan. 16, 2026.

A vintage postcard showing the Education Auditorium Building at ETSTC
A postcard from the 1930s showcasing the then-new “Education Building,” which would be later known as Ferguson Social Sciences. | Photo from the Velma K. Waters Library Lion Archives and Institutional Repository.

First dedicated in 1926 as the “Education Building,” Ferguson's first event was the inauguration of the university's third president, Samuel H. Whitley. The structure also marked another significant milestone for ET—it was the first campus building constructed with state funding after the institution was purchased by the State of Texas in 1917.

The Ferguson Building originally housed administrative offices for the university president and deans, classrooms, a gymnasium known as the Cub Gym, and the former Training School. Officially named the Demonstration School, but affectionately called the Training School by Lion students, it was a university-run K-12 school that enabled future teachers to gain real-world classroom experience. The Training School closed in 1948. A memorial plaque that sits at the southeast corner of Ferguson was dedicated by a group of Training School alumni in 2000.

A photo of a person in professional attire sitting and speaking during a public event.
Civil Rights icon and former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Andrew Young spoke in the Ferguson Auditorium in 2017. | Photo by East Texas A&M Marketing and Communications.

The most enduring feature of the building is its auditorium, which seats 1,200 and has hosted numerous prominent speakers over the years. Notable guest speakers who have appeared in Ferguson Auditorium include:

  • President Lyndon B. Johnson
  • First Lady Claudia “Lady Bird” Johnson
  • Andrew Young (civil rights pioneer, former U.N. Ambassador)
  • Kurt Schuschnigg (former Austrian chancellor, political prisoner and academic)
  • Dolph Briscoe (former Texas governor)
  • Ross Perot (business magnate and U.S. presidential candidate)
  • Dan Rather (award-winning journalist and national news anchor)
  • Laverne Cox (Emmy Award-winning actress)

Ferguson Auditorium has also hosted several concerts over the decades, with artists such as Asleep at the Wheel, Wild Cherry, Tonic, and the Pointer Sisters.

In 1951, after the administrative offices were relocated from the building, many of the office spaces were converted into classrooms. The building was later named in honor of Arthur C. Ferguson, who served for more than two decades as dean of East Texas State Teachers College and then served as interim president from 1946-47 following the unexpected death of President Whitley.

An auditorium on a college campus.
The newly renovated Ferguson Auditorium, pictured just before the building reopened in January 2024 following extensive work. | Photo by Tyler Holloway, East Texas A&M Marketing and Communications

The Ferguson Building has undergone multiple renovations, most notably in 1984 and 2023. In addition to classrooms, it currently houses Campus Custodial Services, Transportation and Fleet Services, the main offices of the College of Humanities, Social Sciences and Arts, the College of Innovation and Design, and the departments of History and Social Sciences.

We are honored to celebrate this milestone and look forward to the next century of excellence for the Ferguson Building.