The College Building, the first permanent building on campus, was officially designated as "Old Central Building" in 1923. It was the pride of the campus in its formative years when the building served many uses, housing the first library as well as several classes, such as the botanical lab that is also pictured in this series. 

Nevertheless, Old Central had already undergone several repairs before its 30th birthday and the building's overall condition would soon prompt calls for its demolition, which eventually would be defeated to solidify its place in OSU's history.

Old Central, like most of the permanent buildings on campus, were used to promote the college in its early days.The structures were often colorized and printed on postcards (see photo series) to indicate progress to alums and attract students and visitors alike. Major buildings on campus were usually featured first in the campus yearbook well into the 60s.