It began as a swimming pool behind the Mansion, now the Biology Pond is used for study, reunions, weddings and a place of quiet and meditation. This year marks 35 years since Missouri Southern bulldozed the swimming pool was owned by the Wallowers in 1972.

“I have been taking my students to the pond for 35 years,” said Dr. Ann Marlowe, professor of English.

The relative quiet and peacefulness by the Pond creates a special environment for students.

“I would take them to the pond, then bring them back to class, and they would write about the experience they had,” Marlowe said. “I think it is a nice place for students to go to get away from the concrete walls of the classrooms.”

Missouri Southern State College tore down the walls and left the concrete bottom to the Pond in 1972. Originally built as a swimming pool for the Wallower family around 1940, it is now a home to ducks with a nature trail entering the woods behind the Pond.

Cindy Hightower, junior elementary education major, heard about the Biology Pond while a student at Crowder College and came out to visit it for herself.

“It looks like it is spring-fed,” Hightower said.

In her article, “The Pond That Mirrors The College,” Marlowe describes how the spring feeds the pond from the aquifer below the Mansion. This water flows toward the bridge on the south end, extending to the marsh and to Turkey Creek.

“This pond is a viable ecological place,” Marlowe said. “Students used to be able to see all kinds of wildlife, such as herons and other such birds.”

Even during the winter, the pond does not freeze, because of the spring-fed water. As the campus has grown, fewer animals are visible around the Pond area. The business parking lot and soccer fields have crowded them out.

“Even though there is not much wildlife to see near the pond, every student should visit the pond,” Marlowe said.