Penn State University Park Campus Walk
Penn State began in 1855 as the Farmers' High School of Pennsylvania, a school set in the middle of the state to teach the science of farming. In 1863 it became Pennsylvania's land-grant college, charged with bringing practical education to working families, and that mission shaped the campus you are about to walk.
This loop starts at Old Main, heads down to the Allen Street Gates on the edge of downtown State College, then climbs the elm-lined Pattee Mall to Old Botany, the Nittany Lion Shrine and the libraries. From there it stretches north to the new Palmer Museum of Art and Beaver Stadium, which you will see from outside, before a well-earned stop at the Berkey Creamery and a finish at the HUB-Robeson Center, a few steps from where you began.
Allow about two hours with time for photos and ice cream. The longest walks, out to the museum and the stadium, take 12 to 15 minutes each. Buildings keep their own hours, so check before heading inside.
10 stops on this tour:
Old Main - Where the Farmers' High School Began
Allen Street Gates - Where Town Meets Gown
Old Botany Building - A Survivor from 1887
Pattee Mall - The Great Elm Walk
Nittany Lion Shrine - The Lion Everyone Lines Up For
Pattee and Paterno Libraries - The Heart of Study
Palmer Museum of Art - Art in the Arboretum
Beaver Stadium - A City on Game Day
Berkey Creamery - Ice Cream with a Pedigree
HUB-Robeson Center - The Campus Living Room
Plan your visit
- Route: 10 stops · about 3.8 miles · walking loop
- Time: about 2 hours at an easy pace, with stops
- Start: Old Main (directions)
- Cost: free tour
- Audio: narrated - tap ▶ Listen at the top of any stop
Stops on this tour
- Old Main - Where the Farmers' High School Began
- Allen Street Gates - Where Town Meets Gown
- Old Botany Building - A Survivor from 1887
- Pattee Mall - The Great Elm Walk
- Nittany Lion Shrine - The Lion Everyone Lines Up For
- Pattee and Paterno Libraries - The Heart of Study
- Palmer Museum of Art - Art in the Arboretum
- Beaver Stadium - A City on Game Day
- Berkey Creamery - Ice Cream with a Pedigree
- HUB-Robeson Center - The Campus Living Room
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