Dillman, Grover C. (Grover Cleveland), 1889-1979

Grover Cleveland Dillman was born in Bangor, Michigan in 1889. He graduated from Michigan Agricultural College (now Michigan State University) with a degree in civil engineering. He joined the Michigan State Highway Department shortly after graduation in 1913 and rose rapidly in the ranks to Deputy State Commissioner in 1922, Chief Engineer in 1924 and State Highway Commissioner in 1929. In 1933 he became Director of Public Service for the city of Grand Rapids and in early 1935 he became Director of the State Welfare Department. He was appointed to the presidency of the Michigan College of Mining and Technology (now Michigan Technological University) in August 1935. President Grover C. Dillman (1935-56) oversaw dramatic changes in the college, including the establishment of a branch campus 250 miles east in Sault Ste. Marie. Also noteworthy was the creation of the Memorial Union Building, which (now remodeled) remains the center of campus, with a cafeteria, bowling, billiards, meeting rooms, student organization offices, and lounges. The college also procured the village of Alberta, Michigan, with its sawmill and 4,000-acre forest from the Ford Motor Company and added the golf course and ice rink (in downtown Houghton) for the NCAA Division I Hockey Huskies. Post-war enrollment blossomed and in 1948 was 1,789 in Houghton and 384 at the Sault branch, and temporary housing was established for the influx of veterans. Programs added during this era included engineering administration, physics, and geological engineering. Active in the community and professionally, Dillman was also an honorary member of the Michigan Tech Alumni Association, a member of Michigan Tech Fund Board of Trustees and a charter member of the President's Club at Michigan Tech. Grover C. Dillman passed away in 1979.