A Layered History

To the uninitiated, it’s just a fence. To the Carnegie Mellon community, the Fence is one the university’s most beloved traditions. This paint-wrapped time capsule and bulletin board has graced The Cut since 1923, when a group of seniors built the original fir-and-locust structure to commemorate their graduating class.

The Fence was originally built as a meeting place for seniors. By the 1960s, the tradition had evolved to its current form, establishing The Fence as a place for students (and only students) to paint messages for the entire campus. The paint was serious, too. Once the most-painted structure on the planet, the Fence actually collapsed under the weight of all those layers in 1993. It was then replaced by a steel-and-concrete structure — and the layers of paint began anew.

Arrow through the gallery below to see the Fence through the years.