Charles Coughlin: The man behind the name

DREW CARROLL Managing Editor

Coughlin-Alumni Stadium is named after a man that graduated from South Dakota State University in 1909 as an engineer.

 Charles Coughlin was the very first inductee into the SDSU Hall of Fame. Coughlin excelled at football, basketball, track and baseball during his time on campus from 1905 to 1909.

 Following graduation, Coughlin worked for a telephone company and power plant in Brookings. In 1910, he switched roles and began working for Briggs and Stratton Company of Milwaukee before teaching mechanical engineering at Purdue University. Coughlin returned to Briggs and Stratton in 1922 and eventually became the president of the company.

 Coughlin made quite a mark on campus after he left it. Coughlin-Alumni Stadium was made possible by a $50,000 gift from Coughlin. He also gave SDSU the Coughlin Campanile in 1929. The campanile has become one of the most recognizable symbols on the campus of SDSU.