February 19, 2016

Jill Schreider
University of Maryland students might be surprised to hear that Millard E. Tydings
legacy is resurfacing with the recent events of the Republican presidential campaign. Millard
Tydings is most known for creating the Tydings Committee. This committee examined
Joseph McCarthy, the man charged with hiring hundreds of communists to work in the
State Department. McCarthy created a fake picture of Tydings posing with the former leader of
the American Communist Party, Earl Browder, in order to cause controversy surrounding
Tydings upcoming election.
According to various news columnists, Ted Cruz and Marco Rubios antics have
mirrored those of McCarthy and Tydings. Cruzs campaign created a fake photograph of Rubio
shaking hands with President Obama, to emphasize Rubios liberal stance on Obamatrade.
However, Twitter users and news sources remarked on Cruzs obvious use of Photoshop.
As a Maryland alumnus, Millard E. Tydings would be proud of his mark on the
University of Maryland campus. Tydings Hall is home to the College of Behavior and Social
Sciences, including economics, psychology, and government and politics majors, with emphasis
on the No. 1 U.S. ranking criminology department.
As one of the oldest buildings on campus, builders completed Tydings Hall in 1896 as the
Engineering Building at the Maryland Agriculture College, which is now the University of
Maryland. In the fall of 1938, the university added the College of Commerce and it occupied the
third floor of the building. Five years later, the Engineering Departments moved out during the
summer semester, and the building transformed to the College of Business and Public
Administration.
Government and politics major, Jonah Panikar, participates on the University of
Marylands Mock Trial Team. The team spends hours upon hours preparing for trial
competitions in Tydings Hall. While Tydings may not be the best building on campus to look
at, its the people inside that make it special, Panikar says. In that regard, there isnt a better
building on campus.
According to the Maryland Archives at Hornbake Library, people named The Millard E.
Tydings building on November 15, 1969. Many gathered at a ceremony that day to honor
Millard E. Tydings life. Those present at the ceremony, including his son and wife, watched as
they installed a bronze plaque near the entrance of the building in commemoration. Currently in
Tydings Hall, students can find information regarding Millard E. Tydings and his son, Joseph
Tydings, on the many walls.
Millard E. Tydings made countless contributions to the University of Maryland and the
state of Maryland as a whole. He served in the Maryland House of Delegates, and then went on
to represent Maryland in the House of Representatives and the U.S Senate. Appropriately,
classes and clubs that will lead Maryland students to a future in government and politics are all
held in Tydings Hall. Many students at this campus will undoubtedly follow in the footsteps of
Tydings in becoming successful leaders.
Today, Tydings Hall is a place for learning, studying, researching, and advising. The
building has hosted events ranging from Mock Trial debates, to special guest lecturers, and
various research projects. It has a go-to study spot on the second floor: a quiet, fairly empty
computer lab. For many people majoring in government and politics, it is where they figure out
their four-year plans, internships, and future goals at the government advising office. Tydings

Hall has come a long way (see pictures below) and it is important to remember and honor its
name and origin.
To check out more about UMD Tydings Hall and the College of Behavioral and Social
Sciences, please visit http://bsos.umd.edu/.

Tydings Hall housed the engineering

department in 1894

Today, in 2016, Tydings Hall houses the

College of Behavioral and Social Sciences

Citations:
Kaiser, D. (2016, February 19). Ted Cruz Is Not the First Politician to Cause Controversy With a
Doctored Photo. Retrieved February 19, 2016.
Tydings Hall. (2014, September 2). Retrieved February 28, 2016, from
http://it.umd.edu/classrooms/buildings/tyd.html.
Maryland Archives at Hornbake Library (primary source documents including the dedication and
naming of Tydings Hall, with information about Millard E. Tydings).