As part of Pitt150 celebrations commemorating the 150th anniversary of the founding of Pittsburg, a special birthday party will honor Ora Francis Grubbs, the namesake of Grubbs Hall, who was born the same year as the town — 1876. 

Faculty and staff housed in Grubbs Hall will host a 150th birthday celebration for that late professor at noon on Friday, Sept. 25, in the basement lobby. The event will feature cake and brief remarks highlighting his life and legacy.  

Grubbs served Pittsburg State University as a professor of history and economics and completed two terms in the Kansas Legislature. Known for his dedication to teaching, he remained on the faculty well past the mandatory retirement age, retiring in 1959 at the age of 83. He died at home just a few blocks from campus at age 92. 

In addition to his academic and public service, Grubbs was a longtime advisor to the Epsilon chapter of Sigma Tau Gamma fraternity and was once recognized as the oldest fraternity sponsor in the United States.  

Grubbs Hall, originally known as the O.F. Grubbs Academic Building, was constructed at the corner of Cleveland and Joplin streets as a classroom building. Today it is home to the departments of Communication and English & Modern Languages, the Grubbs Hall Studio Theatre, and the Communication Center.  

In 1960, the main living room of the Sigma Tau Gamma fraternity house — located between Carnie Smith Stadium and the Wilkinson Alumni Center — was dedicated as the O.F. Grubbs Room. 

Upon his death, Grubbs was survived by his wife, Rose, and their son, Richard Kent Grubbs. 

The Sept. 25 event is open to campus and community members interested in celebrating Pittsburg’s sesquicentennial and honoring a figure whose life was closely intertwined with the city and the university.