Generations of students have been fascinated by the steam tunnels beneath Oregon State. The result is a homegrown folklore about the horrors lurking below, from satanic rituals to cult murders to abductions and more. When Anna Fidler, an art instructor at OSU, reached out to the university’s Energy Center about bringing her class on a tour, manager Les Walton had an idea: What if the students designed a mural for the tunnels—in a sense inscribing themselves into the university’s foundations? “OSU Below” uses Fidler’s art class as a point of departure to explore why the steam tunnels have engendered such curiosity and mythology. The writer, Katherine Cusumano, toured the steam tunnels herself in order to render the vivid sensory details of this belowground world. To bring light to previously untold tunnel stories, she also interviewed current students, faculty, and facilities staff and tracked down hard-to-find OSU community members using creative methods—including identifying a former campus security guard from an old Usenet forum. (“I have to give you some major credit,” the guard, Derek Schott, wrote in response to an early interview query.) In the process, the story argues that, perhaps, the most important role for the steam tunnels is not to heat buildings, but instead to offer students ways to weave themselves and their own stories into the very fabric of the university.
From the Judges
A fun and interesting piece that really speaks to the OSU community and the larger homegrown folklore of the institution!
